EnvironmentalImpactAssessment Biologist Biologist R24 Annual Salary: $58,332.28 - $66,652.94 Please note: While the current vacancy exists in Prince George or Smithers*, EnvironmentalImpact, but at a lower classification. A great opportunity to make an impact on the province's environmental protection

Horns Rev Offshore Wind Power Farm EnvironmentalImpactAssessment on Water Quality #12;Prepared with a planned 150 MW offshore wind farm at Horns Rev, an assessment was made of the effects the wind farm would for the preparation of EIA studies for offshore wind farms." Horns Rev is situated off Blåvands Huk, which is Denmark

The concept of vulnerability has been used to describe the susceptibility of physical, biotic, and social systems to harm or hazard. In this sense, it is a tool that reduces the uncertainties of EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) since it does not depend exclusively on the value assessments of the evaluator, but rather is based on the environmental state indicators of the site where the projects or activities are being carried out. The concept of vulnerability thus reduces the possibility that evaluators will subjectively interpret results, and be influenced by outside interests and pressures during projects. However, up until now, EIA has been hindered by a lack of effective methods. This research study analyzes the concept of vulnerability, defines Vulnerability Importance and proposes its inclusion in qualitative EIA methodology. The method used to quantify Vulnerability Importance is based on a set of environmental factors and indicators that provide a comprehensive overview of the environmental state. The results obtained in Colombia highlight the usefulness and objectivity of this method since there is a direct relation between this value and the environmental state of the departments analyzed. - Research Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The concept of vulnerability could be considered defining Vulnerability Importance included in qualitative EIA methodology. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The use of the concept of environmental vulnerability could reduce the subjectivity of qualitative methods of EIA. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A method to quantify the Vulnerability Importance proposed provides a comprehensive overview of the environmental state. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Results in Colombia highlight the usefulness and objectivity of this method.

The widespread experience of environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) as an anticipatory environmental management tool has generated a considerable debate over the extent to which it is achieving its purposes. This has been measured in terms of EIA 'effectiveness', especially as discussion has moved away from issues of procedural implementation, to the more substantive goals of EIA and its place within broader decision-making contexts. Empirical studies have revealed the relatively weak degree of influence on planning decisions that is being exerted by EIA, which is increasingly being attributed to its rationalist beginnings. This article seeks to direct this debate towards the founding political purposes of EIA which, it is argued, provide a neglected, yet strong, basis for EIA reform. A number of illustrative suggestions are made as a result of this redirection, to enable EIA to adopt a more determinative role in decision making and to contribute to more sustainable patterns of development planning.

The authors discuss an environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) of the Dulang Oilfield Development Project, conducted to determine whether the project could proceed in a safe and environmentally acceptable manner. This is the first EIA for an offshore oilfield in Malaysian waters, and was conducted in anticipation of the Environmental Quality (Prescribed Activities) (EnvironmentalImpactAssessment Order(1987)) which requires an EIA to be conducted for major oil and gas field development projects.

ENVIRONMENTALIMPACTASSESSMENTEnvironmental and Resource Studies ERST 311H ­ Winter 2009 TRENT is by email. Course Summary Description EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) is a process by which is a process by which a balance among these three primary environmental aspects is assessed and the optimal

Toro, Javier, E-mail: jjtoroca@unal.edu.co [Institute of Environmental Studies, National University of Colombia at Bogotá (Colombia)] [Institute of Environmental Studies, National University of Colombia at Bogotá (Colombia); Requena, Ignacio, E-mail: requena@decsai.ugr.es [Department of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, University of Granada (Spain)] [Department of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, University of Granada (Spain); Duarte, Oscar, E-mail: ogduartev@unal.edu.co [National University of Colombia at Bogotá, Department of Electrical Engineering and Electronics (Colombia)] [National University of Colombia at Bogotá, Department of Electrical Engineering and Electronics (Colombia); Zamorano, Montserrat, E-mail: zamorano@ugr.es [Department of Civil Engineering, University of Granada (Spain)] [Department of Civil Engineering, University of Granada (Spain)

2013-11-15T23:59:59.000Z

In environmentalimpactassessment, qualitative methods are used because they are versatile and easy to apply. This methodology is based on the evaluation of the strength of the impact by grading a series of qualitative attributes that can be manipulated by the evaluator. The results thus obtained are not objective, and all too often impacts are eliminated that should be mitigated with corrective measures. However, qualitative methodology can be improved if the calculation of Impact Importance is based on the characteristics of environmental factors and project activities instead on indicators assessed by evaluators. In this sense, this paper proposes the inclusion of the vulnerability of environmental factors and the potential environmentalimpact of project activities. For this purpose, the study described in this paper defined Total Impact Importance and specified a quantification procedure. The results obtained in the case study of oil drilling in Colombia reflect greater objectivity in the evaluation of impacts as well as a positive correlation between impact values, the environmental characteristics at and near the project location, and the technical characteristics of project activities. -- Highlights: • Concept of vulnerability has been used to calculate the importance impactassessment. • This paper defined Total Impact Importance and specified a quantification procedure. • The method includes the characteristics of environmental and project activities. • The application has shown greater objectivity in the evaluation of impacts. • Better correlation between impact values, environment and the project has been shown.

For over 20 years, the South Pacific state of Fiji has required developers to conduct more than 70 environmentalimpactassessments (EIA), without specifying the environmental quality or impacts it considers (in)appropriate. It has ignored aspects of EIA to which agencies funding development have paid little attention--assessing alternatives, monitoring outcomes and enforcing consent conditions. This infers the Fijian state is not serious about using EIA to control environmental quality. Factors other than technical shortcomings are shaping the way the state constrains EIA practice. Unless these factors change, the comprehensive EIA system proposed in Sustainable Development legislation will not prevent environmental degradation.

Through the adoption of Governmental Resolution No. 801/99 the Slovak Republic undertook a commitment to shutdown units 1 and 2 of Jaslovske Bohunice V 1 NPP (WWER 230 reactor type) in 2006 and 2008 respectively. Therefore the more intensive preparation of a decommissioning documentation has been commenced. Namely, the VI NPP Conceptual Decommissioning Plan and subsequently the EnvironmentalImpactAssessment Report of VI NPP Decommissioning were developed. Thus, the standard environmentalimpactassessment process was performed and the most suitable alternative of V1 NPP decommissioning was selected as a basis for development of further decommissioning documents. The status and main results of the environmentalimpactassessment process and EIA report are discussed in more detail in this paper. (authors)

ENVIRONMENTALASSESSMENT/REGULATORY IMPACT REVIEW/ FINAL REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY ANALYSIS Amendment and Need The purpose of the non-AFA crab sideboard limits was to prevent vessels with crab QS from paper of all GOA sideboards for non-American Fisheries Act (AFA) crab vessels. In April 2007

REVIEW Open Access Assessingenvironmentalimpacts of offshore wind farms: lessons learned offshore wind farm, Horns Rev 1 (160 MW with 80 turbines of 2 MW), became operational in 2002. The aver- age capacity of turbines and size of offshore wind farms have been increasing since then

The impact of environmental regulation on macroeconomic performance has been studied in some depth over the last 15 years. Similarly, impact on profit performance, investment intention and location decisions of firms has also been studied, although in less depth. There has been less academic interest, however, in the impact that environmental regulation has on the strategic objectives of companies. This article reports on a research project that focused on the impact that environmental approvals regulation (predominantly environmentalimpactassessment, EIA) has on proposed new development in the international mining sector. Based on a large and externally valid survey of senior mining company executives in Australia and Canada in the late 1990s, the research indicated that a significant majority of firms consider the environmental approvals process to be an important determinant of investment strategy. An initial reaction to these figures might suggest that the majority of respondents believe the environmental approvals process to be a negative influence. However, further questioning indicated that only a small proportion of companies in both countries thought of the environmental approvals process as an impediment to development. Instead, it is clear that most firms see EIA as a catalyst for integrating environmental design into the early planning of a project, thereby alleviating the need to spend money on overcoming environmental problems once a poorly designed project has been commissioned. The somewhat surprising conclusion that companies see environmental approvals regulation as important, but as an encouragement to development rather than as an impediment, goes against much previous industry and academic comment and, at least in relation to the mining sector, refutes the idea that EIA is ''burdensome''.

Resources, Conservation and Recycling 51 (2007) 294­313 Environmentalimpactassessmentenvironmentalimpacts. Therefore, it is vital to evaluate the environmentalimpacts of the symbiosis in order is proposed. In this paper, an LCA-type environmentalimpactassessment of different design schemes

The current trend of industrialization and urbanization in developing nations has a huge impact on anthropogenic and natural ecosystems. Pollution sources increase with the expansion of cities and cause contamination of water, air and soil. The absence of urban environmental planning and management strategies has resulted in greater concern for future urban development. This paper advocates the adoption of strategic environmentalassessment (SEA) as a means to achieve sustainable development in developing countries. It investigates project-level environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) and its limitations. The exploration of SEA and its features are addressed. The effective implementation of SEA can create a roadmap for sustainable development. In many developing countries, the lack of transparency and accountability and ineffective public participation in the development of the policy, plan and program (PPP) would be mitigated by the SEA process. Moreover, the proactive and broadly based characteristics of SEA would benefit the institutional development of the PPP process, which is rarely experienced in many developing countries. The paper also explores the prospects for SEA and its guiding principles in developing countries. Finally, the paper calls for a coordinated effort between all government, nongovernment and international organizations involved with PPPs to enable developing countries to pursue a path of sustainable development through the development and application of strategic environmentalassessment.

The implementation of land use planning (LUP) has a large impact on environmental quality. There lacks a widely accepted and consolidated approach to assess the LUP environmentalimpact using Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment (SEA). In this paper, we developed a state-impact-state (SIS) model employed in the LUP environmentalimpactassessment (LUPEA). With the usage of Matter-element (ME) and Extenics method, the methodology based on the SIS model was established and applied in the LUPEA of Zoucheng County, China. The results show that: (1) this methodology provides an intuitive and easy understanding logical model for both the theoretical analysis and application of LUPEA; (2) the spatial multi-temporal assessment from base year, near-future year to planning target year suggests the positive impact on the environmental quality in the whole County despite certain environmental degradation in some towns; (3) besides the spatial assessment, other achievements including the environmental elements influenced by land use and their weights, the identification of key indicators in LUPEA, and the appropriate environmental mitigation measures were obtained; and (4) this methodology can be used to achieve multi-temporal assessment of LUP environmentalimpact of County or Town level in other areas. - Highlights: • A State-Impact-State model for Land Use Planning EnvironmentalAssessment (LUPEA). • Matter-element (ME) and Extenics methods were embedded in the LUPEA. • The model was applied to the LUPEA of Zoucheng County. • The assessment shows improving environment quality since 2000 in Zoucheng County. • The method provides a useful tool for the LUPEA in the county level.

Africa can benefit from the experience of other areas in implementing environmentalimpactassessments (EIAs), but African countries face a greater challenge in achieving this goal due to such problems as inadequate environmental legislation; inappropriate institutional framework for coordination and monitoring government activities; a shortage of qualified manpower, inadequate financial resources; absence of public awareness of the need for EIAs; and lack of suitable screening procedures to determine which development projects require an EIA. Despite these difficulties, African countries can realize short- and long-term benefits from the incorporation of the EIA into their decision-making process.

Research Summary Sustainability impactassessment: tools for environmental, social and economic to produce Sustainability ImpactAssessment Tools (SIATs) that will be used to predict the impacts) and will be used as part of the ImpactAssessment (IA) process, as set out in the ImpactAssessment Guidelines

Assessing the influence of environmentalimpactassessments on science and policy: An analysis Keywords: Environmentalimpactassessment Dams Three Gorges Project Uncertainty Prioritization a b s t r exist between the scientific interest (via number of publications) in environmentalimpacts and (a

Nadeem, Obaidullah [Department of City and Regional Planning, University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore (Pakistan)], E-mail: obaidnadeem@yahoo.com; Hameed, Rizwan [Department of City and Regional Planning, University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore (Pakistan)], E-mail: d_rizwan@hotmail.com

2008-11-15T23:59:59.000Z

Environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) was first introduced in Pakistan based on the Environmental Protection Ordinance 1983. The EIA process was further strengthened under the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act 1997, which became operational under EIA Regulations 2000. Despite a sound legal basis and comprehensive guidelines, evidence suggests that EIA has not yet evolved satisfactorily in Pakistan. An evaluation of the EIA system against systematic evaluation criteria, based on interviews with EIA approval authorities, consulting firms and experts, reveals various shortcomings of the EIA system. These mainly include; inadequate capacity of EIA approval authorities, deficiencies in screening and scoping, poor EIA quality, inadequate public participation and weak monitoring. Overall, EIA is used presently as a project justification tool rather than as a project planning tool to contribute to achieving sustainable development. Whilst shortcomings are challenging, central government has recently shown a high degree of commitment to the environmental protection by making EIA compulsory for all the public sector projects likely to have adverse environmentalimpacts. The paper identifies opportunities for taking advantage of the current environment for strengthening the EIA process.

Assessing the prospective environmentalimpacts of photovoltaic systems based on a simplified LCA the environmentalimpacts of PV systems are small during their operating phase, they are more significant during the use of LCA to assess the environmentalimpacts of one electricity-production technology. To address

To achieve meaningful sustainable development, EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) should avoid the net losses in the environment resource base. But EIA practice does not always avoid the losses caused by the implementation of the projects under EIA regulation. Some environmentalimpacts are, simply, admitted, even without enforcing any form of compensation. When applied, compensation is sometimes just a monetary payment to offset the environmental loss. This paper looks for evidence on the role that compensation is given at present in EIA practice in Spain, and for some of its conceptual and regulatory roots. Specifically, it explores how compensation is addressed in 1302 records of decision (RODs) on those projects subject to the Spanish EIA regulation published during the years 2006 and 2007, to know how far Spain is from preserving the environmental resource base managed through this particular aspect of EIA practice. As a result, it is concluded that the practice of ecological compensation in EIA in Spain is much lower than it could be expected in a theoretical sustainability context committed to avoid net losses in the environment resource base, mainly due to an EIA practice focused on on-site mitigation that allows these net losses.

To be effective, an EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) system, first, has to minimize the probability that projects with significant environmental effects are implemented without EIA, and second, minimize the number of EIAs, which do not provide decision makers with essential information, so that the decision is improved as a result of EIA. The objective of this study was to find out how frequently in Estonia the projects implemented without EIA have caused significant environmental effects, and to measure the relative frequency of EIAs that have no influence on decision. An extensive survey with e-mail distributed questionnaires was carried out to reveal information from governmental agencies, local self-governments, and developers. There was no evidence that projects authorized without EIA have had environmentalimpacts, which could have been mitigated as a result of EIA. In contrast, about half of EIAs did not alter the decision of relevant authorities. This proportion was valid to both mandatory EIAs and those initiated on judgement basis. In our view, the proportion of no-influence EIAs was excessive and indicated the need to reconsider the provisions applying to the projects with a mandatory EIA requirement as well as judgements practice.

The objective of this program was to conduct an environmentalimpactassessment study for selenium from coal mine spoils. The use of in-situ lysimetry to predict selenium speciation, transformation, and mobility under natural conditions was evaluated. The scope of the study was to construct and test field-scale lysimeter and laboratory mini-column to assess mobility and speciation of selenium in coal mine overburden and soil systems; to conduct soil and groundwater sampling throughout the state of Oklahoma for an overall environmentalimpactassessment of selenium; and to conduct an in-depth literature review on the solubility, speciation, mobility, and toxicity of selenium from various sources. Groundwater and surface soil samples were also collected from each county in Oklahoma. Data collected from the lysimeter study indicated that selenium in the overburden of the abandoned mine site was mainly found in the selenite form. The amount of selenite found was too low and immobile to be of concern to the environment. The spoil had equilibrated long enough (over 50 years) that most of the soluble forms of selenium have already been lost. Examination of the overburden indicated the presence of pyrite crystals that precipitated over time. The laboratory mini-column study indicated that selenite is quite immobile and remained on the overburden material even after leaching with dilute acid. Data from groundwater samples indicated that based on the current permissible level for selenium in groundwater (0.01 mg Se/L), Oklahoma groundwater is widely contaminated with the element. However, according to the new regulation (0.05 mg Se/L), which is to be promulgated in 1992, only 9 of the 77 counties in the state exceed the limit.

This research examines complexities surrounding environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) in a multi-jurisdictional environment, with a specific focus on opportunities for public participation. With almost universal adoption of EIA, projects are increasingly subject to more than one assessment process. Thus there is demand to facilitate inter-jurisdictional coordination of EIAs. Canada has growing expertise with multijuristictional EIA that serves to illustrate the costs and opportunities associated with three different approaches to coordination: standardization, harmonization and substitution. Findings suggest that, although fraught with issues, harmonization is the most realistic approach for coordinating efforts. Harmonization has the potential to minimize duplication, avoid process uncertainty and increase efficiency and effectiveness in EIA. Furthermore, the analysis demonstrates that a bilateral agreement between jurisdictions is the best approach to harmonization, so long as negotiation of the agreement includes opportunities for meaningful participation, and implementation includes activities designed to communicate the assessment responsibilities of each jurisdiction, activities and schedules to the public. The experience of participants of different coordinated EIAs in Canada serves as counsel for on-going and future efforts to facilitate inter-jurisdictional coordination.

When Waste Becomes Intelligent: Assessing the EnvironmentalImpact of Microchip Tagging Claudia Binder1 , Svetlana Domnitcheva2 1 Natural and Social Science Interface Department of Environmental recognition of several tags. Many shops are already successfully using such systems as prevention

Even a cursory glance at the literature on environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) reveals that public participation is being considered as an integral part of the assessment procedure. Public participation in EIA is commonly deemed to foster democratic policy-making and to render EIA more effective. Yet a closer look at the literature unveils that, beyond this general assertion, opinions of the precise meaning, objectives and adequate representation of public participation in EIA considerably diverge. Against this background, in this article we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the academic debate on public participation in EIA concerning its meaning, objectives and adequate level of inclusiveness. In so doing, we hope to stimulate a more focused debate on the subject, which is key to advancing the research agenda. Furthermore, this paper may serve as a starting point for practitioners involved in defining the role of public participation in EIA practice. -- Highlights: • There is little reflection on the meaning, objectives and adequate level of inclusiveness of public participation in EIA. • We provide a comprehensive overview of the academic debate on public participation in EIA concerning the meaning, objectives and adequate level of inclusiveness. • Theoretical claims put forth by scholars are contrasted with empirical evidence. • Overview shall stimulate a more focused debate on the subject. • This paper may serve as a starting point for practitioners involved in defining the role of public participation in EIA.

Public participation processes are touted as an effective way to increase the capacity and legitimacy of environmentalassessment and the regulatory process that rely on them. Recent changes to the Canadian environmentalassessment process narrowed the criteria for who can participate in environmentalassessments from any who were interested to those who were most directly affected. This article examines the potential consequences of this change by exploring other areas of Canadian regulatory law where a similar directed affected test has been applied. This new standard risks institutionalizing the long-understood representational bias confronted by more diffuse interest like environmental protection. Restricting participation to the “directly affected” is far too narrow a test for processes like environmentalassessment that are designed to determine the public interest. -- Highlights: • Public participation can improve the legitimacy of environmentalassessments. • New Canadian rules narrow the range of eligible participants. • Similar rules in Alberta have excluded environmental representation. • The new rules may institutionalize bias against more diffuse interests. • Restricting participation to the “directly affected” is far too narrow.

The Clean Coal Technology (CCT) Program of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is a partnership between government and industry designed for cleaner and more efficient use of coal, both for electric power generation and industrial applications. Approximately seven billion dollars have been committed to the CCT program (two and half-billion dollars from DOE and the rest by industry). The potential environmental effects of CCT projects are subject to review because a proposal by DOE to cost-share a CCT project constitutes a {open_quotes}major federal action{close_quotes} under section 102(2)(c) of NEPA. Consequently, by virtue of numerous NEPA impact evaluations of CCT projects, a great deal has been learned about environmentalimpact analyses for coal combustion sources. In the course of NEPA review of CCT projects, air quality is often a significant environmental issue. This paper focuses on CCT air quality issues from a NEPA perspective, including Prevention of Significant Deterioration, New Source Review, atmospheric visibility, global climate change, and acidic deposition. The analyses of the impacts of the proposed action, alternative actions, and cumulative effects will be examined. (It is a {open_quotes}given{close_quotes} that any action must comply with Federal and State requirements and the provision of the Clean Air Act and other regulatory statues.) NEPA is not a permitting process, but rather it is a process to provide decision makers with the information they require make an informed decision about the potential environmental consequences of undertaking an action. The NEPA review of environmental effects has been instrumental in effectuating beneficial changes in some past CCT projects-changes that have mitigated potentially adverse environmentalimpacts. Accordingly, NEPA has served as a constructive analytical tool, with similar implications for other actions related to the electric power generation industry that are subject to environmental review.

Environmentalimpact for offshore wind farms: Geolocalized Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach and floating offshore wind farms. This work was undertaken within the EU- sponsored EnerGEO project, aiming, and its use for the evaluation of environmentalimpacts of wind energy. The effects of offshore wind farms

Forests are becoming severely fragmented as a result of land development. South Korea has responded to changing community concerns about environmental issues. The nation has developed and is extending a broad range of tools for use in environmental management. Although legally mandated environmental compliance requirements in South Korea have been implemented to predict and evaluate the impacts of land-development projects, these legal instruments are often insufficient to assess the subsequent impact of development on the surrounding forests. It is especially difficult to examine impacts on multiple (e.g., regional and local) scales in detail. Forest configuration and size, including forest fragmentation by land development, are considered on a regional scale. Moreover, forest structure and composition, including biodiversity, are considered on a local scale in the EnvironmentalImpactAssessment process. Recently, the government amended the EnvironmentalImpactAssessment Act, including the SEA, EIA, and small-scale EIA, to require an integrated approach. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to establish an impactassessment system that minimizes the impacts of land development using an approach that is integrated across multiple scales. This study focused on forest fragmentation due to residential development and road construction sites in selected Congestion Restraint Zones (CRZs) in the Greater Seoul Area of South Korea. Based on a review of multiple-scale impacts, this paper integrates models that assess the impacts of land development on forest ecosystems. The applicability of the integrated model for assessingimpacts on forest ecosystems through the SEIA process is considered. On a regional scale, it is possible to evaluate the location and size of a land-development project by considering aspects of forest fragmentation, such as the stability of the forest structure and the degree of fragmentation. On a local scale, land-development projects should consider the distances at which impacts occur in the vicinity of the forest ecosystem, and these considerations should include the impacts on forest vegetation and bird species. Impacts can be mitigated by considering the distances at which these influences occur. In particular, this paper presents an integrated environmentalimpactassessment system to be applied in the SEIA process. The integrated assessment system permits the assessment of the cumulative impacts of land development on multiple scales. -- Highlights: • The model is to assess the impact of forest fragmentation across multiple scales. • The paper suggests the type of forest fragmentation on a regional scale. • The type can be used to evaluate the location and size of a land development. • The paper shows the influence distance of land development on a local scale. • The distance can be used to mitigate the impact at an EIA process.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) to provide the DOE and other public agency decision makers with the environmental documentation required to take informed discretionary action on the proposed Kalina Geothermal Demonstration project. The EA assesses the potential environmentalimpacts and cumulative impacts, possible ways to minimize effects associated with partial funding of the proposed project, and discusses alternatives to DOE actions. The DOE will use this EA as a basis for their decision to provide financial assistance to Exergy, Inc. (Exergy), the project applicant. Based on the analysis in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human or physical environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an environmentalimpact statement is not required and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

The EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) and Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment (SEA) are procedural tools which have as goal to assess and evaluate possible environmental effects of, respectively, a proposed project or policy plan. The goal of this article is to explore possible bottlenecks in applying both the EIA and SEA procedures on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) activities in the Netherlands, as experience is currently minimal or lacking. In this study we focus mainly on the institutional and procedural aspects of the screening and scoping phases of both procedures. This is achieved by reviewing EIA and SEA procedures for analogue projects for the three distinctive process steps of a CCS project, namely the power plant with capture, the transport and finally the underground storage of the CO{sub 2}. Additionally, EIA and SEA or similar procedures on CCS in other countries are reviewed and the legal framework for the Dutch EIA and SEA is studied. This article shows a concise overview of the EIA and SEA procedure in the Netherlands and the relation between both procedures. Based on our findings we have constructed a conceptual taxonomy for the scope of both procedures for CCS in the Netherlands. This taxonomy conceptualizes the possible integration of assessing the environmentalimpacts for tiered levels of decision making. This integration might be needed for first CCS projects as decisions on the strategic (spatial planning) level are currently absent for CCS in the Netherlands. Perpendicular to such integration is the integration of linked activities in the CCS chain and their alternatives, into one procedure. We argue that it would be beneficial to combine the separate EIA procedures for CCS activities into one procedure or at least provide close linkage between them.

This report examines the relationship between simulation-based science and judicial assessments of simulations or models supporting evaluations of environmental harms or risks, considering both how it exists currently and how it might be shaped in the future. This report considers the legal standards relevant to judicial assessments of simulation-based science and provides examples of the judicial application of those legal standards. Next, this report discusses the factors that inform whether there is a correlation between the sophistication of a challenged simulation and judicial support for that simulation. Finally, this report examines legal analysis of the broader issues that must be addressed for simulation-based science to be better understood and utilized in the context of judicial challenge and evaluation. !

The aim for this research is to review environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) practices in sub-Saharan Africa, drawing upon appropriate theoretical and methodological work on EIA. This study uses a comparative evaluation method to examine the extent of environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) in project analysis. It uses site and services low cost housing projects from Kenya. The research has three major components: (1) review of environmental practice in Sub-Saharan Africa through literature review and case studies; (2) review of general literature on EIA as practiced by international agencies and developed countries; and (3) formulation of more suitable guidelines for EIA procedures in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, has high rates of urbanization and industrialization. Until recently, decisions on most large-scale projects such as expressways, harbors, industries, dams, and irrigation were considered with an emphasis on traditional technical and cost-benefit analysis. Spurred by massive environmental degradation and persistent community agitation in oil producing areas, environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) legislation was passed in late 1992. The main purpose of this article is to review and assess the content of this legislation and the guidelines produced by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA), the institution responsible for EIA administration. Some EIA reports have been prepared and reviewed by FEPA since 1994. There are some positive outcomes and expectations, but some problems have been identified as well, including: deliberate restriction of public involvement and participation by proponents and/or their consultants, interagency conflict leading to high cost and project delays especially in the oil industry, and restriction of public access to final EIA reports. These are discussed, and recommendations for improving the process are made.

This article describes a proposed protocol that is intended to provide a comprehensive list of factors to be considered in evaluating the direct and indirect environmentalimpacts of building insulation materials, as well as detailed descriptions of standardized calculation methodologies to determine those impacts. The energy and environmentalimpacts of insulation materials can generally be divided into two categories: (1) direct impact due to the embodied energy of the insulation materials and other factors and (2) indirect or environmentalimpacts avoided as a result of reduced building energy use due to addition of insulation. Standards and product category rules exist, which provide guidelines about the life cycle assessment (LCA) of materials, including building insulation products. However, critical reviews have suggested that these standards fail to provide complete guidance to LCA studies and suffer from ambiguities regarding the determination of the environmentalimpacts of building insulation and other products. The focus of the assessment protocol described here is to identify all factors that contribute to the total energy and environmentalimpacts of different building insulation products and, more importantly, provide standardized determination methods that will allow comparison of different insulation material types. Further, the intent is not to replace current LCA standards but to provide a well-defined, easy-to-use comparison method for insulation materials using existing LCA guidelines. - Highlights: • We proposed a protocol to evaluate the environmentalimpacts of insulation materials. • The protocol considers all life cycle stages of an insulation material. • Both the direct environmentalimpacts and the indirect impacts are defined. • Standardized calculation methods for the ‘avoided operational energy’ is defined. • Standardized calculation methods for the ‘avoided environmentalimpact’ is defined.

After three years of negotiations, the ISO 14000 standards on Environmental Management Tools are now making rapid progress toward completion and international adoption. At the outset of this standardization effort, one methodological tool--life-cycle assessment (LCA)--was singled out for standardization, while the remaining standards were focused on management frameworks and applications--environmental management systems, environmental performance evaluation, environmental labeling and environmental auditing. The reason for singling out LCA was the belief that it could serve as a tool for evaluating the environmentalimpacts associated with competing production technologies, alternative materials, product options and packaging choices, and for supporting environmental claims in the marketplace. Of particular importance was LCA`s system-wide, cradle-to-grave, scope, which was considered essential for accurate and fair assessments and comparisons. This presentation examines the evolution of LCA standardization within the ISO-14000 process, describes the LCSEA framework and methodology, and explores the role of environmental professionals in this context.

Morrison-Saunders, Angus, E-mail: a.morrison-saunders@murdoch.edu.au [School of Environmental Sciences and Development, North West University (South Africa); School of Environmental Science, Murdoch University (Australia); Retief, Francois [School of Environmental Sciences and Development, North West University (South Africa)

2012-09-15T23:59:59.000Z

Internationally there is a growing demand for environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) to move away from its traditional focus towards delivering more sustainable outcomes. South Africa is an example of a country where the EIA system seems to have embraced the concept of sustainability. In this paper we test the existing objectives for EIA in South Africa against sustainability principles and then critique the effectiveness of EIA practice in delivering these objectives. The outcome of the research suggests that notwithstanding a strong and explicit sustainability mandate through policy and legislation, the effectiveness of EIA practice falls far short of what is mandated. This shows that further legislative reform is not required to improve effectiveness but rather a focus on changing the behaviour of individual professionals. We conclude by inviting further debate on what exactly practitioners can do to give effect to sustainability in EIA practice.

This article describes a proposed protocol that is intended to provide a comprehensive list of factors to be considered in evaluating the direct and indirect environmentalimpacts of building insulation materials, as well as detailed descriptions of standardized calculation methodologies to determine those impacts. The energy and environmentalimpacts of insulation materials can generally be divided into two categories: (1) direct impact due to the embodied energy of the insulation materials and other factors, and (2) indirect or environmentalimpacts avoided as a result of reduced building energy use due to addition of insulation. Standards and product category rules exist that provide guidelines about the life cycle assessment (LCA) of materials, including building insulation products. However, critical reviews have suggested that these standards fail to provide complete guidance to LCA studies and suffer from ambiguities regarding the determination of the environmentalimpacts of building insulation and other products. The focus of the assessment protocol described here is to identify all factors that contribute to the total energy and environmentalimpacts of different insulation products and, more importantly, provide standardized determination methods that will allow comparison of different insulation material types. Further, the intent is not to replace current LCA standards but to provide a well-defined, easy-to-use comparison method for insulation materials using existing LCA guidelines.

Internationally the inclusion of health within environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) has been shown to be limited. While Australian EIA documentation has not been studied empirically to date, deficiencies in practice have been documented. This research developed an audit tool to undertake a qualitative descriptive analysis of 22 Major Project EAs in New South Wales, Australia. Results showed that health and wellbeing impacts were not considered explicitly. They were, however, included indirectly in the identification of traditional public health exposures associated with the physical environment and to a lesser extent the inclusion of social and economic impacts. However, no health data was used to inform any of the assessments, there was no reference to causal pathways between exposures or determinants and physical or mental health effects, and there was no inclusion of the differential distribution of exposures or health impacts on different populations. The results add conceptually and practically to the long standing integration debate, showing that health is in a position to add value to the EIA process as an explicit part of standard environmental, social and economic considerations. However, to overcome the consistently documented barriers to integrating health in EIA, capacity must be developed amongst EIA professionals, led by the health sector, to progress health related knowledge and tools.

EnvironmentalAssessment/Regulatory Impact Review FOR AMENDMENT 45 TO THE FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLAN it would conflict with the Bering Sea non-roe season. At its January 1996 meeting, the Council considered/C Regulatory Areas must be made. Amendment 19 to the FMP, implemented as a measure to prevent roe stripping

. Scope of Investigation This study examined recreational activity and the resulting changes in the environment (impacts) at a water based recreation area. The findings of this study are~ generalizable only to areas where conditions, both physically... (Chairman of Committee) E ward Heat (Member) De 1 ma r nke (Nembe r ) Leslie M. Reid (Head of Department) May 1983 111 ABSTRACT A Nethod of Assessment of EnvironmentalImpacts on Remote Campsites at Lake Ouachita. (Nay 1983) Jeffrey James Kuhl, B...

Syria is a country experiencing rapid change, undergoing a process of political and governance decentralisation, opening its markets to the private sector, and experiencing a rise in infrastructure development. In light of these economic growth targeted changes, knowledge of the status and capacity of the Syrian EIA system to ensure environmental protection becomes of paramount importance. Syria first introduced EIA as a Draft Decree in 1995, which was not formally adopted until 2008. To date, no structured evaluation of Syria's EIA system has been conducted, a knowledge gap addressed through this paper. The research presented herein comprises a review and comparative evaluation of Syrian legislation and procedures, to the EU EIA Directive and World Bank Operational Directive, as well as a series of interviews with Syrian stakeholders involved in EIA implementation. The investigation concluded that the new EIA provisions provide a sound legal basis. From interviews however, it was ascertained that EIA implementation faces a number of barriers such as, a lack of EIA integration into existing decision making and licensing processes and persistent exclusion of public projects from EIA. A number of recommendations are proposed, perceived necessary for the enhancement of EIA implementation in Syria.

Environmental and health impacts are presented for activities associated with transient testing of nuclear fuel and material using two candidate test reactors. Transient testing involves irradiation of nuclear fuel or materials for short time-periods under high neutron flux rates. The transient testing process includes transportation of nuclear fuel or materials inside a robust shipping cask to a hot cell, removal from the shipping cask, pre-irradiation examination of the nuclear materials, assembly of an experiment assembly, transportation of the experiment assembly to the test reactor, irradiation in the test reactor, transport back to the hot cell, and post-irradiation examination of the nuclear fuel or material. The potential for environmental or health consequences during the transportation, examination, and irradiation actions are assessed for normal operations, off-normal (accident) scenarios, and transportation. Impacts to the environment (air, soil, and groundwater), are assessed during each phase of the transient testing process. This report documents the evaluation of potential consequences to the general public. This document supports the EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) required by the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) (42 USC Subsection 4321 et seq.).

The evaluation of EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) systems is a highly recommended strategy for enhancing their effectiveness and quality. This paper describes an evaluation of EIA in Colombia, using the model and the control mechanisms proposed and applied in other countries by Christopher Wood and Ortolano. The evaluation criteria used are based on Principles of EnvironmentalImpactAssessment Best Practice, such as effectiveness and control features, and they were contrasted with the opinions of a panel of Colombian EIA experts as a means of validating the results of the study. The results found that EIA regulations in Colombia were ineffective because of limited scope, inadequate administrative support and the inexistence of effective control mechanisms and public participation. This analysis resulted in a series of recommendations regarding the further development of the EIA system in Colombia with a view to improving its quality and effectiveness.

Scenarios and scenario analysis have become popular approaches in organizational planning and participatory exercises in pursuit of sustainable development. However, they are little used, at least in any formal way, in environmentalimpactassessment (EIA). This is puzzling because EIA is a process specifically dedicated to exploring options for more-sustainable (i.e., less environmentally damaging) futures. In this paper, we review the state of the art associated with scenarios and scenario analysis, and describe two areas where scenario analysis could be particularly helpful in EIA: (a) in defining future developments for cumulative effects assessment; and (b) in considering the influence of contextual change - e.g. climate change - on impact forecasts for specific projects. We conclude by encouraging EIA practitioners to learn about the promise of scenario-based analysis and implement scenario-based methods so that EIA can become more effective in fostering sustainable development.

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is proposing to fund the Tucannon River Spring Chinook Captive Broodstock Program, a small-scale production initiative designed to increase numbers of a weak but potentially recoverable population of spring chinook salmon in the Tucannon River in the State of Washington. BPA has prepared an EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) (DOE/EA-l326) evaluating the proposed project. Based on the analysis in the EA, BPA has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) is not required, and BPA is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

United States. Bonneville Power Administration; Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation; Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife

1999-04-01T23:59:59.000Z

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is proposing to fund research for 2 to 3 years on the feasibility of reintroducing coho salmon into mid-Columbia River basin tributaries. The research would take place in the Methow and Wenatchee river basins in Chelan and Okanogan Counties, Washington. BPA has prepared an EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1282) evaluating the proposed project. Based on the analysis in the EA, BPA has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) is not required, and BPA is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact.

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) should be used to assist carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) planners to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and avoid unintended environmental trade-offs. LCA is an analytical framework for determining environmentalimpacts resulting from processes, products, and services. All life cycle stages are evaluated including raw material sourcing, processing, operation, maintenance, and component end-of-life, as well as intermediate stages such as transportation. In recent years a growing number of LCA studies have analyzed CCS systems. We reviewed 50+ LCA studies, and selected 11 studies that compared the environmental performance of 23 electric power plants with and without CCS. Here we summarize and interpret the findings of these studies. Regarding overall climatemitigation effectiveness of CCS, we distinguish between the capture percentage of carbon in the fuels, the net carbon dioxide (CO2) emission reduction, and the net GHG emission reduction. We also identify trade-offs between the climate benefits and the potential increased non-climate impacts of CCS. Emissions of non-CO2 flue gases such as NOx may increase due to the greater throughput of fuel, and toxicity issues may arise due to the use of monoethanolamine (MEA) capture solvent, resulting in ecological and human health impacts. We discuss areas where improvements in LCA data or methods are needed. The decision to implement CCS should be based on knowledge of the overall environmentalimpacts of the technologies, not just their carbon capture effectiveness. LCA will be an important tool in providing that knowledge.

India plans to construct numerous nuclear plants and uranium mines across the country, which could have significant environmental, health, and social impacts. The national EnvironmentalImpactAssessment process is supposed to regulate these impacts. This paper examines how effective this process has been, and the extent to which public inputs have been taken into account. In addition to generic problems associated with the EIA process for all kinds of projects in India, there are concerns that are specific to nuclear facilities. One is that some nuclear facilities are exempt from the environmental clearance process. The second is that data regarding radiation baseline levels and future releases, which is the principle environmental concern with respect to nuclear facilities, is controlled entirely by the nuclear establishment. The third is that members of the nuclear establishment take part in almost every level of the environmental clearance procedure. For these reasons and others, the EIA process with regard to nuclear projects in India is of dubious quality. We make a number of recommendations that could address these lacunae, and more generally the imbalance of power between the nuclear establishment on the one hand, and civil society and the regulatory agencies on the other.

The number of environmental licence applications for projects affecting Indigenous peoples in Brazil has increased since the implementation of a major infrastructure program (Programa de Aceleração do Crescimento) in 2007. This increase has caused problems for Brazilian agencies involved in environmental licensing procedures (IBAMA, FUNAI and others). We analyze the Brazilian environmental licensing procedure for situations involving Indigenous peoples, Maroons (Quilombolas) or other traditional communities in order to identify potential improvements for Brazil and potentially other countries. Although Brazilian procedures are consistent with international best practice in environmental licensing, in practice social impacts are inadequately addressed, mitigation measures are poorly implemented, and there is a lack of enforcement and compliance. The paper is based on document analysis and interviews with key actors in governmental and non-governmental organizations and Indigenous leaders. We suggest that Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) processes need to be conducted at the earliest stages of project planning, and that Indigenous peoples should actively participate in impactassessment, monitoring and evaluation processes. In order to achieve a social licence to operate, there needs to be full recognition of traditional knowledge and acceptance of Indigenous values and concepts. We also recommend increased involvement of social experts and mediators as well as improved accountability, enforcement and grievance mechanisms in the licensing process. - Highlights: • The Brazilian environmental licensing system needs to address social impacts better. • Communities need to be consulted at the earliest stage possible. • Indigenous peoples need to be invited to participate in impactassessment teams. • Independent Indigenous committees to monitor implementation of mitigation measures. • Accountability, enforcement and grievance mechanisms need to be improved.

This paper focuses on the challenges concerning the quality assurance of environmentalimpact statements (EIS) in Finland and the European Union. Moreover, the linkage between environmentalimpactassessment and decision-making is examined from a legal point of view. In addition, the paper includes some comparative remarks concerning the content requirements of examination of alternatives. The study reveals that a significant problem of the Finnish EIA system is the lack of efficient access to a judicial procedure to challenge the quality and completeness of an EIS. Another pitfall is the fact that in certain permit procedures, environmental consideration is so limited that only a minor part of the EIA can be taken into account. In its current state, EIA legislation in the EU and in Finland does not guarantee that the assessment results filter into decision-making. From the national point of view, the shortcomings can be addressed by amending current legislation concerning licensing procedures so that authorities have the competence and the duty to take environmental matters widely into account in the permit consideration. At the European level, a legislative alternative could be to strengthen the substantive element of the EIA Directive (85/337/EEC). This would increase the weight of EIA related arguments in the national appellate procedures and contribute, in some cases significantly, to the substantive influence of EIA in decision-making.

This study shows the practical application of the EIA method based on fuzzy logic proposed by the authors (Peche and Rodriguez, 2009) to a simplified case of study-the activity of a petrol station throughout its exploitation. The intensity (p{sub 1}), the extent (p{sub 2}) and the persistence (p{sub 3}) were the properties selected to describe the impacts and their respective assessment functions v-bar{sub i}=f(p-bar{sub i}) were determined. The main actions (A) and potentially affected environmental factors (F) were selected. Every impact was identified by a pair A-F and the values of the three impact properties were estimated for each of them by means of triangular fuzzy numbers. Subsequently, the fuzzy estimation of every impact was carried out, the estimation of the impact A{sub 1}-F{sub 2} (V-bar{sub 1}) being explained in detail. Every impact was simultaneously represented by its corresponding generalised confidence interval and membership function. Since the membership functions of all impacts were similar to triangular fuzzy numbers, a triangular approach (TA) was used to describe every impact. A triangular approach coefficient (TAC) was introduced to quantify the similarity of each fuzzy number and its corresponding triangular approach, where TAC (V-bar) element of (0, 1] and TAC being 1 when the fuzzy number is triangular. The TACs-ranging from 0.96 to 0.99-proved that TAs were valid in all cases. Next, the total positive and negative impacts-TV-bar{sup +} and TV-bar{sup -} were calculated and later, the fuzzy value of the total environmentalimpact TV-bar was determined from them. Finally, the defuzzification of TV-bar led to the punctual impact estimator TV{sup (1)} = -88.50 and its corresponding uncertainty interval [{delta}{sub l}(TV-bar),{delta}{sub r}(TV-bar)]=[6.52,6.96], which represent the total value of the EI. In conclusion, the EIA method enabled the integration of heterogeneous impacts, which exerted influence on environmental factors of a very diverse nature in very different ways, into a global impact indicator.

This document contains the analysis details and summary of analyses conducted to evaluate the environmentalimpacts for the Resumption of Transient Fuel and Materials Testing Program. It provides an assessment of the impacts for the two action alternatives being evaluated in the environmentalassessment. These alternatives are (1) resumption of transient testing using the Transient Reactor Test Facility (TREAT) at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and (2) conducting transient testing using the Annular Core Research Reactor (ACRR) at Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico (SNL/NM). Analyses are provided for radiologic emissions, other air emissions, soil contamination, and groundwater contamination that could occur (1) during normal operations, (2) as a result of accidents in one of the facilities, and (3) during transport. It does not include an assessment of the biotic, cultural resources, waste generation, or other impacts that could result from the resumption of transient testing. Analyses were conducted by technical professionals at INL and SNL/NM as noted throughout this report. The analyses are based on bounding radionuclide inventories, with the same inventories used for test materials by both alternatives and different inventories for the TREAT Reactor and ACRR. An upper value on the number of tests was assumed, with a test frequency determined by the realistic turn-around times required between experiments. The estimates provided for impacts during normal operations are based on historical emission rates and projected usage rates; therefore, they are bounding. Estimated doses for members of the public, collocated workers, and facility workers that could be incurred as a result of an accident are very conservative. They do not credit safety systems or administrative procedures (such as evacuation plans or use of personal protective equipment) that could be used to limit worker doses. Doses estimated for transportation are conservative and are based on transport of the bounding radiologic inventory that will be contained in any given test. The transportation analysis assumes all transports will contain the bounding inventory.

After more than 20 years of experience with environmentalimpactassessment (EIA), the government of the People's Republic of China is set to introduce a new EIA Law, in September 2003, in which strategic environmentalassessment (SEA) complements the current project-oriented EIA process. In general, the new law does not attempt to modify the existing EIA system in any radical ways, suggesting that the government consider current practices satisfactory. In order to assess the likely prospects of the new EIA Law for project-level EIA, this paper presents an evaluation of the current EIA process in China, first, establishing the historical context of the current process and, second, considering the main issues and concerns relating to the institutional and procedural arrangements, and practical implementation of the process. The main problems highlighted are as follows: the narrow historic focus on pollution of air, water and soil, at the expense of the consideration of wider environmental, social and health impacts; environmental protection agencies being funded by development-oriented local government administrations; the lack of consideration of alternatives in EIA processes; and the lack of effective public participation. More specific procedural issues are also discussed. On the basis of this analysis, we make recommendations for improving the effectiveness of EIA at the project level. The introduction of SEA in the new law marks a real step forward for EIA in China, although it appears to exclude central government policies, and there are improved provisions for public participation. However, the prospects for EIA in China will remain mixed as long as the new law leaves project-level EIA largely unchanged.

The document describes generic models for environmentalimpactassessments of releases of radioactive substances from CERN facilities. Except for few models developed in the Safety Commission, the models are based on the 1997 Swiss directive HSK-R-41 and on the 2001 IAEA Safety Report No. 19. The writing style is descriptive, facilitating the practical implementation of the models at CERN. There are four scenarios assumed for airborne releases: (1) short-term releases for release limit calculations, (2) actual short-term releases, (3) short-term releases during incidents/accidents, and (4) chronic long-term releases during the normal operation of a facility. For water releases, two scenarios are considered: (1) a release into a river, and (2) a release into a water treatment plant. The document shall be understood as a reference for specific environmental studies involving radioactive releases and as a recommendation of the Safety Commission.

The document describes generic models for environmentalimpactassessment of radioactive releases from CERN facilities. Except for few models developed in the TIS Division, the models are based on the 1997 Swiss directive HSK-R-41 and on the 2001 IAEA Safety Report No. 19. The writing style is descriptive, facilitating the practical implementation of the models at CERN. There are four scenarios assumed for airborne releases: (1) short-term releases for release limit calcu¬lations, (2) actual short-term releases, (3) short-term releases during incidents/accidents, and (4) chronic long-term releases during the normal operation of a facility. For water releases, two scenarios are considered: (1) a release into a river, and (2) a release into a water treatment plant. The document shall be understood as a reference for specific environmental studies involving radioactive releases and as a recommendation of the TIS Division.

The objective of this thesis was to evaluate the environmental trade-offs inherent in multi-criteria objectives of an integrated environmental policy. A probabilistic multi-attribute impact pathway analysis (MAIPA) was ...

Strategic environmentalassessment (SEA) has become an increasingly important decision-support tool for providing information on the environmental implications of a policy, plan, or program. The goal is to safeguard the environment and promote sustainable development at the strategic level. Despite major progress in implementing SEA practices internationally, developing countries, such as China, often lag behind in applying SEA methodology. Lack of available data and time constraints arising from tight schedules create problems. The rapid impactassessment matrix (RIAM) is a potential resource for breaking through such difficulties. Our analysis of RIAM applications suggested that it could become a tool for evaluating strategic alternatives because of its applicability in interdisciplinary settings, its transparency, and its short implementation timeframe. To make it more suitable for the SEA context, we have developed two major improvements to the conventional RIAM process: assignment of weights to assessment indicators and the development of an integrated environmentalassessment score (IES). The improved RIAM process was employed in an SEA of the development plan for the Nansha District in Guangzhou, the capital city of Guangdong Province in China. It was used to assess five alternatives for development in Wanqingsha (WQS), a subunit of Nansha, where important ecological resources are located and where industrial development could impact the air quality in the neighboring Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The evaluation identified WQS-A04 as the preferred alternative. This alternative involved a minimal amount of industrial development – 10% compared with the most intense development alternative – and included important wetland preservation plans. The assessment results have been incorporated into the officially approved development plan for Nansha. The improved RIAM methodology is well adapted to the technical aims of SEA and decision-making structures in China. It offers the potential for delivering timely and quality results to decision-making processes. To achieve the desired efficiency, it is recommended that an SEA procedure take into account findings acquired from an improved RIAM application at an early stage, then, at a later stage, results from more comprehensive assessments conducted using more sophisticated methods should be added, if time and data are available. - Highlights: • RIAM is a potential SEA tool due to its multidisciplinary setting and rapid process. • Weighting index and computing IES are raised for improving RIAM when applied to SEAs. • The improved RIAM boosts SEA effectiveness by timely responding to decision-making. • The improved RIAM is more suitable to an SEA bothered by tight time or data shortage. • The improved RIAM adapts to the technical aims of SEA and decision features in China.

The objective of this program was to conduct an environmentalimpactassessment study for selenium from coal mine spoils. The use of in-situ lysimetry to predict selenium speciation, transformation, and mobility under natural conditions was evaluated. The scope of the study was to construct and test field-scale lysimeter and laboratory mini-column to assess mobility and speciation of selenium in coal mine overburden and soil systems; to conduct soil and groundwater sampling throughout the state of Oklahoma for an overall environmentalimpactassessment of selenium; and to conduct an in-depth literature review on the solubility, speciation, mobility, and toxicity of selenium from various sources. Groundwater and surface soil samples were also collected from each county in Oklahoma. Data collected from the lysimeter study indicated that selenium in the overburden of the abandoned mine site was mainly found in the selenite form. The amount of selenite found was too low and immobile to be of concern to the environment. The spoil had equilibrated long enough (over 50 years) that most of the soluble forms of selenium have already been lost. Examination of the overburden indicated the presence of pyrite crystals that precipitated over time. The laboratory mini-column study indicated that selenite is quite immobile and remained on the overburden material even after leaching with dilute acid. Data from groundwater samples indicated that based on the current permissible level for selenium in groundwater (0.01 mg Se/L), Oklahoma groundwater is widely contaminated with the element. However, according to the new regulation (0.05 mg Se/L), which is to be promulgated in 1992, only 9 of the 77 counties in the state exceed the limit.

With two regulations, 244/2009 and 245/2009, the European Commission recently put into practice the EuP Directive in the area of lighting devices, aiming to improve energy efficiency in the domestic lighting sector. This article presents a comprehensive life cycle assessment comparison of four different lighting technologies: the tungsten lamp, the halogen lamp, the conventional fluorescent lamp and the compact fluorescent lamp. Taking advantage of the most up-to-date life cycle inventory database available (ecoinvent data version 2.01), all life cycle phases were assessed and the sensitivity of the results for varying assumptions analysed: different qualities of compact fluorescent lamps (production phase), different electricity mixes (use phase), and end-of-life scenarios for WEEE recycling versus municipal solid waste incineration (disposal phase). A functional unit of 'one hour of lighting' was defined and the environmental burdens for the whole life cycle for all four lamp types were calculated, showing a clearly lower impact for the two gas-discharge lamps, i.e. the fluorescent and the compact fluorescent lamp. Differences in the product quality of the compact fluorescent lamps reveal to have only a very small effect on the overall environmental performance of this lamp type; a decline of the actual life time of this lamp type doesn't result in a change of the rank order of the results of the here examined four lamp types. It was also shown that the environmental break-even point of the gas-discharge lamps is reached long before the end of their expected life-span. All in all, it can be concluded that a change from today's tungsten lamp technology to a low-energy-consuming technology such as the compact fluorescent lamp results in a substantial environmental benefit.

Vietnam has one of the fastest growing economies in the world and has achieved significant socio-economic development in recent years. However this growth is placing increased pressure on an already depleted natural environment. Environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) is recognised by the Government and international organizations as an important tool in the management of the impacts of future development on the country's natural resource base. The Government's commitment to EIA has been demonstrated through the development and adoption of the Law on Environment Protection (Revised) in 2005 which sets out the requirements for EIA and which represents a major step in the development of a robust legislative framework for EIA in Vietnam. The Law on Environment Protection (Revised) 2005 has now been operational for several years and we have undertaken an evaluation of the resulting EIA system in Vietnam. We argue that while significant improvements have been achieved in the EIA policy framework, an important gap remains between EIA theory and practice. We contend that the basis of the current EIA legislation is strong and that future developments of the EIA system in Vietnam should focus on improving capacity of EIA practitioners rather than further substantial legislative change. Such improvements would allow the Vietnamese EIA system to emerge as an effective and efficient tool for environmental management in Vietnam and as a model EIA framework for other developing countries.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an environmentalassessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1205) for the proposed implementation of a wetland mitigation bank program at the Savannah River Site (SRS), located near Aiken, South Carolina. Based on the analyses in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, the preparation of an environmentalimpact statement (EIS) is not required, and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) and Floodplain Statement of Findings.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an environmentalassessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1285) for the proposed repair of the Pond B dam at the Savannah River Site (SRS), located near Aiken, South Carolina. Based on the analyses in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, the preparation of an environmentalimpact statement (EIS) is not required, and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) and Floodplain Statement of Findings.

This article explores the nature of public participation in the environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) process in the context of the potential integration of the Aarhus Convention principles into the UK EIA system. Although the Convention advocates 'early' and 'effective' participation, these terms remain undefined and questions persist about exactly how to implement the Aarhus principles. Ten practice evaluation criteria derived from the Aarhus Convention are used to analyse the public participation procedures used in four UK waste disposal EIA case studies. The paper reports the extent to which the practice evaluation criteria were fulfilled, explores the types and effectiveness of the participation methods used in the EIAs, and highlights some of the key barriers that appear to impede the execution of 'early' and 'effective' participation programmes. It concludes that the Aarhus Convention will undoubtedly lead to a strengthening of participation procedures but that the level of improvement secured will depend upon how its ideals are interpreted and incorporated into legislation and practice.

Transportation Agencies (STAs) in rendering better-informed decisions for the concrete pavement material choices, the major research objective is to analyze the environmental, economic, and social impacts of the four concrete pavement alternatives from...

Traditional mechanisms for public participation in environmentalimpactassessment under U.S. federal law have been criticized as ineffective and unable to resolve conflict. As these mechanisms are modified and new approaches developed, we argue that participation should be designed and evaluated not only on practical grounds of cost-effectiveness and efficiency, but also on ethical grounds based on democratic ideals. In this paper, we review and synthesize modern democratic theory to develop and justify four ethical principles for public participation: equal opportunity to participate, equal access to information, genuine deliberation, and shared commitment. We then explore several tensions that are inherent in applying these ethical principles to public participation in EIA. We next examine traditional NEPA processes and newer collaborative approaches in light of these principles. Finally, we explore the circumstances that argue for more in-depth participatory processes. While improved EIA participatory processes do not guarantee improved outcomes in environmental management, processes informed by these four ethical principles derived from democratic theory may lead to increased public engagement and satisfaction with government agency decisions. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Four ethical principles based on democratic theory for public participation in EIA. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer NEPA and collaboration offer different strengths in meeting these principles. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We explore tensions inherent in applying these principles. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Improved participatory processes may improve public acceptance of agency decisions.

In the summer of 2020, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to launch a spacecraft as part of the Mars 2020 mission. One option for the rover on the proposed spacecraft uses a Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG) to provide continuous electrical and thermal power for the mission. An alternative option being considered is a set of solar panels for electrical power with up to 80 Light-Weight Radioisotope Heater Units (LWRHUs) for local component heating. Both the MMRTG and the LWRHUs use radioactive plutonium dioxide. NASA is preparing an EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act. The EIS will include information on the risks of mission accidents to the general public and on-site workers at the launch complex. This Nuclear Risk Assessment (NRA) addresses the responses of the MMRTG or LWRHU options to potential accident and abort conditions during the launch opportunity for the Mars 2020 mission and the associated consequences. This information provides the technical basis for the radiological risks of both options for the EIS.

A 77-ha site, known as the Niagara Falls Storage Site and located in northwestern New York State, holds about 190, 000 m{sup 3} of soils, wastes, and residues contaminated with radium and uranium. The facility is owned by the US Department of Energy. The storage of residues resulting from the processing of uranium ores started in 1944, and by 1950 residues from a number of plants were received at the site. The residues, with a volume of about 18,000 m{sup 3}, account for the bulk of the radioactivity, which is primarily due to Ra-226; because of the extraction of uranium from the ore, the amount of uranium remaining in the residues is quite small. An analysis of the environmentalimpactassessment and environmental compliance actions taken to date at this site and their effectiveness are discussed. This case study provides an illustrative example of the complexity of technical and nontechnical issues for a large radiative waste facility. 11 refs., 7 figs., 2 tabs.

RESEARCH ARTICLE Environmentalimpact of greenhouse tomato production in France Thierry Boulard Abstract The environmentalimpact of greenhouse pro- duction in France is poorly documented. Environmental production under polytunnel. Environmentalimpacts where assessed by life cycle analysis. Analyses were

The proposed overhead power line construction project (Sand Dunes to Ochoa, in Eddy and Lea Counties, New Mexico) will supply additional electric power to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) and involve construction of a new electric substation at WIPP. This would provide a redundant electrical power source to WIPP. A finding of no significant impact is made.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has completed an environmentalassessment (DOE/EA-1339), which is incorporated herein by reference, for proposed disposition of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) wastes, low-level radioactive waste (LLW), mixed low-level radioactive waste (MLLW), and transuranic (TRU) waste from the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant Site (Paducah Site) in Paducah, Kentucky. All of the wastes would be transported for disposal at various locations in the United States. Based on the results of the impact analysis reported in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major federal action that would significantly affect the quality of the human environment with in the context of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, preparation of an environmentalimpact statement is not necessary, and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

Since environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) regulations were adopted in China 30 years ago, the implementation rate of EIA policies for development projects has been steadily increasing while national environmental quality keeps deteriorating. This contradiction prevents achievement of the goals that the regulations were originally created for, raising concerns regarding the EIA implementation process. One of the objectives of EIA is the evaluation of socio-economic costs introduced by various commercial activities. However, independent economic entities are inclined to break away from these cost related responsibilities, making it necessary for government agencies and EIA organizations to participate in the evaluation process. The practice of avoiding costs may also bring forth other issues, such as rent-seeking behavior and conspiracies. Reducing private costs and the tendency of the three EIA stakeholders to evade social responsibility are intertwined in every EIA process. Their activities are as follows: The government is the lawmaker whose attitude toward the EIA organization determines how business owners react in the EIA process. The government inclination can be interpreted as a signal from which enterprises can determine the nature of the government, which helps the enterprise owners formulate their future actions. A similar relationship also exists among the government, EIA organizations, and enterprise entities. Fundamentally, the correlations between the EIA stakeholders are determined by their socio-economic situation, namely, the economic costs and benefits they encounter. In this article, signaling game theory derived from the classic game theory is applied to describe the EIA process in China by analyzing the activities of the stakeholders and searching for game equilibrium solutions. The optimal reaction schema for stakeholders was obtained by transforming the equilibrium.

In recent years the need to enhance public participation in EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA), and the efficacy of alternative mechanisms in achieving this goal, have been central themes in the EIA literature. The benefits of public participation are often taken for granted, and partly for this reason the underlying rationale for greater public participation is sometimes poorly articulated, making it more difficult to determine how to pursue it effectively. The reasons for seeking public participation are also highly diverse and not always mutually consistent. There has been limited analysis of the implications of different forms and degrees of public participation for public decision making based on EIA, and little discussion of how experience with public participation in EIA relates to debates about participation in policy making generally. This paper distinguishes various purposes for public participation in EIA, and discusses their implications for decision making. It then draws on some general models of public participation in policy making to consider how approaches to participation in EIA can be interpreted and valued, and asks what EIA experience reveals about the utility of these models. It argues that the models pay insufficient attention to the interaction that can occur between different forms of public participation; and to the fact that public participation raises issues regarding control over decision making that are not subject to resolution, but must be managed through ongoing processes of negotiation.

The environmentalimpacts of various hydrogen production processes are evaluated and compared, considering several energy sources and using life cycle analysis. The results indicate that hydrogen produced by thermochemical water decomposition cycles are more environmentally benign options compared to conventional steam reforming of natural gas. The nuclear based four-step Cu–Cl cycle has the lowest global warming potential (0.559 kg CO{sub 2}-eq per kg hydrogen production), mainly because it requires the lowest quantity of energy of the considered processes. The acidification potential results show that biomass gasification has the highest impact on environment, while wind based electrolysis has the lowest. The relation is also investigated between efficiency and environmentalimpacts. -- Highlights: • Environmental performance of nuclear-based hydrogen production is investigated. • The GWP and AP results are compared with various hydrogen production processes. • Nuclear based 4-step Cu–Cl cycle is found to be an environmentally benign process. • Wind-based electrolysis has the lowest AP value.

Detecting environmentalimpacts on metapopulations of mound spring invertebrates Assessingenvironmentalimpacts on metapopulations. We assume that the probability of colonisation decreases to detect environmentalimpacts on metapopulations with small numbers of patches. D 2001 Elsevier Science

Toxicity testing is a means of establishing the environmental risk of uranium tailings release. It is valuable in designing tailings containment structures because it assists in setting acceptable levels of risk of the design. This paper presents details of toxicity tests of the tailings from Ranger Uranium Mine, Northern Territory, Australia. The results suggest that the non-radiological toxicity of the tailings is low. The environmental risk of a tailings release is more likely to be related to the physical impacts of the tailings, including infilling of billabongs and changes in the sedimentology of riparian ecosystems rather than their biogeochemical impact. Two major results were: (1) water from treatment with washed tailing fines was not toxic to Hydra viridissima, and (2) mixtures of washed tailings fines and natural floodplain sediment (overlying water or elutriates) were not toxic to Hydra viridissima or Moinodaphnia macleayi. 33 refs., 4 figs., 3 tabs.

The proposed Edgeley/Kulm Project is a 21-megawatt (MW) wind generation project proposed by Florida Power and Light (FPL) Energy North Dakota Wind LLC (Dakota Wind) and Basin Electric Power Cooperative (Basin). The proposed windfarm would be located in La Moure County, south central North Dakota, near the rural farming communities of Kulm and Edgeley. The proposed windfarm is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2003. Dakota Wind and other project proponents are seeking to develop the proposed Edgeley/Kulm Project to provide utilities and, ultimately, electric energy consumers with electricity from a renewable energy source at the lowest possible cost. A new 115-kilovolt (kV) transmission line would be built to transmit power generated by the proposed windfarm to an existing US Department of Energy Western Area Power Administration (Western) substation located near Edgeley. The proposed interconnection would require modifying Western's Edgeley Substation. Modifying the Edgeley Substation is a Federal proposed action that requires Western to review the substation modification and the proposed windfarm project for compliance with Section 102(2) of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 42 U.S.C. 4332, and Department of Energy NEPA Implementing Procedures (10 CFR Part 1021). Western is the lead Federal agency for preparation of this EnvironmentalAssessment (EA). The US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is a cooperating agency with Western in preparing the EA. This document follows regulation issued by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) for implementing procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508), and is intended to disclose potential impacts on the quality of the human environment resulting from the proposed project. If potential impacts are determined to be significant, preparation of an EnvironmentalImpact Statement would be required. If impacts are determined to be insignificant, Western would complete a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). Environmental protection measures that would be included in the design of the proposed project are included.

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is considering 12 different alternatives for acquiring energy resources over the next 20 years. Each of the alternatives utilizes a full range of energy resources (e.g., coal, cogeneration, conservation, and nuclear); however, individual alternatives place greater emphases on different types of power-producing resources and employ different timetables for implementing these resources. The environmentalimpacts that would result from the implementation of each alternative and the economic valuations of these impacts, will be an important consideration in the alternative selection process. In this report we discuss the methods used to estimate environmentalimpacts from the resource alternatives. We focus on pollutant emissions rates, ground-level air concentrations of basic criteria pollutants, the acidity of rain, particulate deposition, ozone concentrations, visibility attenuation, global warming, human health effects, agricultural and forest impacts, and wildlife impacts. For this study, pollutant emission rates are computed by processing BPA data on power production and associated pollutant emissions. The assessment of human health effects from ozone indicated little variation between the resource alternatives. Impacts on plants, crops, and wildlife populations from power plant emissions are projected to be minimal for all resource alternatives.

been assessed with Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies [1], [2], [3] and [4]. However environmentalEnvironmentalassessment of electricity scenarios with Life Cycle Assessment Touria Larbi1 impactsassessment of scenarios is very rarely evaluated through a life cycle perspective partly because

Final Draft ENVIRONMENTALASSESSMENT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION, MODIFICATION, AND OPERATION OF THREE OF THE CONSTELLATION PROGRAM, JOHN F. KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLORIDA Abstract This EnvironmentalAssessment addresses AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION JOHN F. KENNEDY SPACE CENTER ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAM OFFICE KENNEDY SPACE

A thermal analysis of a large-scale (e.g., 1900 gpm), open-loop ground source heat pump (GSHP) installed on the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) campus in southeastern Washington State has been performed using a numerical modeling approach. Water temperature increases at the upgradient extraction wells in the system and at the downgradient Columbia River are potential concerns, especially since heat rejection to the subsurface will occur year-round. Hence, thermal impacts of the open-loop GSHP were investigated to identify operational scenarios that minimized downgradient environmentalimpacts at the river, and upgradient temperature drift at the production wells. Simulations examined the sensitivity of the system to variations in pumping rates and injected water temperatures, as well as to hydraulic conductivity estimates of the aquifer. Results demonstrated that both downgradient and upgradient thermal impacts were more sensitive to injection flow rates than estimates of hydraulic conductivity. Higher injection rates at lower temperatures resulted in higher temperature increases at the extraction wells but lower increases at the river. Conversely, lower pumping rates and higher injected water temperatures resulted in a smaller temperature increase at the extraction wells, but higher increases at the river. The scenario with lower pumping rates is operationally more efficient, but does increase the likelihood of a thermal plume discharging into the Columbia River. However, this impact would be mitigated by mixing within the hyporheic zone and the Columbia River. The impact under current operational conditions is negligible, but future increases in heat rejection could require a compromise between maximizing operational efficiency and minimizing temperature increases at the shoreline.

The three projects as proposed by Pacific Gas and Electric Company and the environmental analysis of the projects are discussed. Sections on the natural and social environments of the proposed projects and their surrounding areas consist of descriptions of the setting, discussions of the adverse and beneficial consequences of the project, and potential mitigation measures to reduce the effects of adverse impacts. The EnvironmentalImpact Report includes discussions of unavoidable adverse effects, irreversible changes, long-term and cumulative impacts, growth-inducing effects, and feasible alternatives to the project. (MHR)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration; Washington (State). Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.

1996-08-01T23:59:59.000Z

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) proposes to fund the portion of the Washington Wildlife Mitigation Agreement (Agreement) pertaining to wildlife habitat mitigation projects to be undertaken in a cooperative effort with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). This Agreement serves to establish a monetary budget funded by BPA for projects proposed by Washington Wildlife Coalition members and approved by BPA to protect, mitigate, and improve wildlife and/or wildlife habitat within the State of Washington that has been affected by the construction of Federal dams along the Columbia River. This EnvironmentalAssessment examines the potential environmental effects of acquiring and/or improving wildlife habitat within five different project areas. These project areas are located throughout Grant County and in parts of Okanogan, Douglas, Adams, Franklin, Kittias, Yakima, and Benton Counties. The multiple projects would involve varying combinations of five proposed site-specific activities (habitat improvement, operation and maintenance, monitoring and evaluation, access and recreation management, and cultural resource management). All required Federal, State, and tribal coordination, permits and/or approvals would be obtained prior to ground-disturbing activities.

This environmentalassessment was prepared to assess potential environmentalimpacts associated with the proposed action to widen and operate unused Trench 36 in the 218-E-12B Low-Level Burial Ground for disposal of low-level waste. Information contained herein will be used by the Manager, U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office, to determine if the Proposed Action is a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. If the Proposed Action is determined to be major and significant, an environmentalimpact statement will be prepared. If the Proposed Action is determined not to be major and significant, a Finding of No Significant Impact will be issued and the action may proceed. Criteria used to evaluate significance can be found in Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations 1508.27. This environmentalassessment was prepared in compliance with the ''National Environmental Policy Act of1969'', as amended, the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of ''National Environmental Policy Act'' (Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations 1500-1508), and the U.S. Department of Energy Implementing Procedures for ''National Environmental Polio Act'' (Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations 1021). The following is a description of each section of this environmentalassessment. (1) Purpose and Need for Action. This section provides a brief statement concerning the problem or opportunity the U.S, Department of Energy is addressing with the Proposed Action. Background information is provided. (2) Description of the Proposed Action. This section provides a description of the Proposed Action with sufficient detail to identify potential environmentalimpacts. (3) Alternatives to the Proposed Action. This section describes reasonable,alternative actions to the Proposed Action, which addresses the Purpose and Need. A No Action Alternative, as required by Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations 1021, also is described. (4) Affected Environment. This section provides a brief description of the locale in which the Proposed Action would take place. (5) EnvironmentalImpacts. This section describes the range of environmentalimpacts, beneficial and adverse, of the Proposed Action. Impacts of alternatives briefly are discussed. (6) Permits and Regulatory Requirements. This section provides a brief description of permits and regulatory requirements for the Proposed Action. (7) Organizations Consulted. This section lists any outside groups, agencies, or individuals contacted as part of the environmentalassessment preparation and/or review. (8) References. This section provides a list of documents used to contribute information or data in preparation of this environmentalassessment.

; Environmental policy 1. Introduction High crude oil prices and increasing public awareness of the environmental to be attractive first markets for alternative fuel technologies given their scale, fuel consumption, and high

F I N A L Campus Planning EnvironmentalImpact Report UCSF Mount Zion Garage State Clearinghouse No ENVIRONMENTALIMPACT REPORT Under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the University of California procedures for implementing CEQA, following completion of a Draft EnvironmentalImpact Report (EIR

Sousa, Debora Batista Pinheiro, E-mail: deborabpsousa@gmail.com [Postgraduate Program of Aquatic Resources and Fishery (PPGRAP/UEMA), State University of Maranhão (Brazil); Neta, Raimunda Nonata Fortes Carvalho [Department of Chemistry and Biology, State University of Maranhão (Brazil)

2014-10-06T23:59:59.000Z

This study used micronucleus assays and erythrocyte indices in the freshwater fish tambaqui, Colossoma macropomum, to assessenvironmentalimpacts in the Environmental Protection Area at Maracanã, São Luis, Brazil. Fish were sampled from two locations within the protected area, Serena Lagoon and Ambude River, on four occasions. Biometric data (length and weight) and an aliquot of blood were collected from each fish for analysis. Erythrocyte indices including: mean corpuscular volume, mean corpuscular hemoglobin and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration were calculated, and blood samples were examined for micronuclei and nuclear morphological changes. Micronuclei were found in fish from both locations, although the frequency was higher in fish from Ambude River. Nuclear morphological changes were identified only in fish collected from Ambude River. Several nuclear morphological changes were found in erythrocytes stained with Giemsa, including: micronuclei and binucleate nuclei. On average, erythrocyte indices were lower in fish collected from Ambude River than in those from Serena Lagoon. Our results indicate that micronuclei and erythrocyte indices can be used in C. macropomum as indicators of environmental health.

CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION ISSUES AND ENVIRONMENTALIMPACTS ASSOCIATED WITH ONCE-THROUGH COOLING of the Studies Used to Detect Impacts to Marine Environments by California's Coastal Power Plants Using Once of Assumptions, Methods, and Analyses Used In Recent Studies to Assess the Impacts of Power Plants That Use

The Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) in 2002 released Position Statement, No. 3, Terrestrial Biological Surveys as an Element of Biodiversity Protection outlining how terrestrial fauna survey data are to be used and interpreted in the preparation of environmentalimpactassessments (EIA). In 2004, the EPA released its Guidance for the Assessment of Environmental Factors, Terrestrial Fauna Surveys for EnvironmentalImpactAssessment in Western Australia, No. 56. This paper briefly assesses the adequacy of recent terrestrial fauna surveys undertaken to support publicly released EIAs and indicates that the EPA is not always adhering to its own position and guidance statements. This paper argues that the current fauna survey guidelines are in need of improvement. The approach and requirements of some other Australian states are briefly assessed to identify similarities and where improvements can be made to the Western Australian (WA) guidelines. This paper concludes with suggestions on how the process and the guidelines in WA can be revised to more adequately assess the impact of developments on terrestrial vertebrate biodiversity and ecosystem function. These suggestions may have relevance for other areas where fauna surveys are undertaken to support EIAs.

This document considers: the need for uranium enrichment facilities; site location; plant description; and describes the power generating facilities in light of its existing environment. The impacts from continuing operations are compared with alternatives of shutdown, relocation, and alternative power systems. (PSB)

The Department of Energy`s (DOE) Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site (the Site), formerly known as the Rocky Flats Plant, has generated radioactive, hazardous, and mixed waste (waste with both radioactive and hazardous constituents) since it began operations in 1952. Such wastes were the byproducts of the Site`s original mission to produce nuclear weapons components. Since 1989, when weapons component production ceased, waste has been generated as a result of the Site`s new mission of environmental restoration and deactivation, decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) of buildings. It is anticipated that the existing onsite waste storage capacity, which meets the criteria for low-level waste (LL), low-level mixed waste (LLM), transuranic (TRU) waste, and TRU mixed waste (TRUM) would be completely filled in early 1997. At that time, either waste generating activities must cease, waste must be shipped offsite, or new waste storage capacity must be developed.

Papers presented at the symposium are in the disciplines of biometry, environmental medicine, epidemiology, mathematics, and statistics. Attention is given to assessing risk due to environmental agents, particularly those known to be carcinogenic; both the complex medical issues involved and the mathematical and statistical methodologies used in analysis are presented. Separate abstracts have been prepared for 15 papers for inclusion in the Energy Data Base. (RJC)

Environmental Health and Safety Assessment Program Manual 7/15/2013 #12;Environmental Health/26/2013. The most recent version of this document is available electronically at: http://sp.ehs.cornell.edu/env/general-environmental-management/environmental.........................................................................................................................4 #12;Environmental Health and Safety Assessment Program Manual Approved by: (Barb English) Last

Landfilling is nowadays the most common practice of waste management in Italy in spite of enforced regulations aimed at increasing waste pre-sorting as well as energy and material recovery. In this work we analyse selected alternative scenarios aimed at minimizing the unused material fraction to be delivered to the landfill. The methodological framework of the analysis is the life cycle assessment, in a multi-method form developed by our research team. The approach was applied to the case of municipal solid waste (MSW) management in Rome, with a special focus on energy and material balance, including global and local scale airborne emissions. Results, provided in the form of indices and indicators of efficiency, effectiveness and environmentalimpacts, point out landfill activities as the worst waste management strategy at a global scale. On the other hand, the investigated waste treatments with energy and material recovery allow important benefits of greenhouse gas emission reduction (among others) but are still affected by non-negligible local emissions. Furthermore, waste treatments leading to energy recovery provide an energy output that, in the best case, is able to meet 15% of the Rome electricity consumption.

Increasing emphasis has been placed in recent years on development of the theory of EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA), primarily as a consequence of increasing recognition that the theoretical basis of 'state-of-the-art' EIA is inadequately developed and detailed. This study reviews consideration given in the research literature to the role of science in EIA in order to identify implicit theories. It is suggested that there are two main interpretations of the role of science in EIA (EIA as applied science and EIA as civic science) and five distinct models are identified within these paradigms. These models appear to be based predominantly on existing philosophies of science (such as positivism or relativism) and simplistic and ill-defined conceptions of the purposes of EIA. A broad model is proposed for the advancement of theory regarding the role of science in EIA which emphasises conceptual consideration and empirical investigation of the purposes, and hence outcomes, of EIA and the causal processes utilised to achieve these purposes. The model necessitates a reorientation of the research agenda, away from process and procedure to focus on substantive purposes, and this will require more integrative and connective research than has been commonplace in the past. The EIA research agenda must evolve and mature if this globally significant decision tool is to fulfil its potential.

The tar-sand resources of the US have the potential to yield as much as 36 billion barrels (bbls) of oil. The tar-sand petroleum-extraction technologies now being considered for commercialization in the United States include both surface (above ground) systems and in situ (underground) procedures. The surface systems currently receiving the most attention include: (1) thermal decomposition processes (retorting); (2) suspension methods (solvent extraction); and (3) washing techniques (water separation). Underground bitumen extraction techniques now being field tested are: (1) in situ combustion; and (2) in situ steam-injection procedures. At this time, any commercial tar-sand facility in the US will have to comply with at least 7 major federal regulations in addition to state regulations; building, electrical, and fire codes; and petroleum-industry construction standards. Pollution-control methods needed by tar-sand technologies to comply with regulatory standards and to protect air, land, and water quality will probably be similar to those already proposed for commercial oil-shale systems. The costs of these systems could range from about $1.20 to $2.45 per barrel of oil produced. Estimates of potential pollution-emisson levels affecting land, air, and water were calculated from available data related to current surface and in situ tar-sand field experiments in the US. These data were then extrapolated to determine pollutant levels expected from conceptual commercial surface and in situ facilities producing 20,000 bbl/d. The likelihood-of-occurrence of these impacts was then assessed. Experience from other industries, including information concerning health and ecosystem damage from air pollutants, measurements of ground-water transport of organic pollutants, and the effectiveness of environmental-control technologies was used to make this assessment.

MODULE DESCRIPTION FORM CL959 Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment in Action Module Registrar: Dr Assessment (SEA) is a process for identifying and assessing the environmentalimpacts of policies, plans was implemented in the EU member countries on July 2004. In Scotland, the EnvironmentalAssessment (Scotland) Act

Groundwater impacts have been analyzed for the proposed remote-handled low-level waste disposal facility. The analysis was prepared to support the National Environmental Policy Act environmentalassessment for the top two ranked sites for the proposed disposal facility. A four-phase screening and analysis approach was documented and applied. Phase I screening was site independent and applied a radionuclide half-life cut-off of 1 year. Phase II screening applied the National Council on Radiation Protection analysis approach and was site independent. Phase III screening used a simplified transport model and site-specific geologic and hydrologic parameters. Phase III neglected the infiltration-reducing engineered cover, the sorption influence of the vault system, dispersion in the vadose zone, vertical dispersion in the aquifer, and the release of radionuclides from specific waste forms. These conservatisms were relaxed in the Phase IV analysis which used a different model with more realistic parameters and assumptions. Phase I screening eliminated 143 of the 246 radionuclides in the inventory from further consideration because each had a half-life less than 1 year. An additional 13 were removed because there was no ingestion dose coefficient available. Of the 90 radionuclides carried forward from Phase I, 57 radionuclides had simulated Phase II screening doses exceeding 0.4 mrem/year. Phase III and IV screening compared the maximum predicted radionuclide concentration in the aquifer to maximum contaminant levels. Of the 57 radionuclides carried forward from Phase II, six radionuclides were identified in Phase III as having simulated future aquifer concentrations exceeding maximum contaminant limits. An additional seven radionuclides had simulated Phase III groundwater concentrations exceeding 1/100th of their respective maximum contaminant levels and were also retained for Phase IV analysis. The Phase IV analysis predicted that none of the thirteen remaining radionuclides would exceed the maximum contaminant levels for either site location. The predicted cumulative effective dose equivalent from all 13 radionuclides also was less than the dose criteria set forth in Department of Energy Order 435.1 for each site location. An evaluation of composite impacts showed one site is preferable over the other based on the potential for commingling of groundwater contamination with other facilities.

This environmentalassessment addresses the environmental effects of a proposed action and the no action alternative to comply with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ground water standards at the Slick Rock, Colorado, Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project sites. The sites consist of two areas designated as the North Continent (NC) site and the Union Carbide (UC) site. In 1996, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) completed surface cleanup at both sites and encapsulated the tailings in a disposal cell 5 miles east of the original sites. Maximum concentration limits (MCLs) referred to in this environmentalassessment are the standards established in Title 40 ''Code of Federal Regulations'' Part 192 (40 CFR 192) unless noted otherwise. Ground water contaminants of potential concern at the NC site are uranium and selenium. Uranium is more prevalent, and concentrations in the majority of alluvial wells at the NC site exceed the MCL of 0.044 milligram per liter (mg/L). Selenium contamination is less prevalent; samples from only one well had concentrations exceeding the MCL of 0.01 mg/L. To achieve compliance with Subpart B of 40 CFR 192 at the NC site, DOE is proposing the strategy of natural flushing in conjunction with institutional controls and continued monitoring. Ground water flow and transport modeling has predicted that concentrations of uranium and selenium in the alluvial aquifer will decrease to levels below their respective MCLs within 50 years.

Environmentalimpactassessment (EIA) was formally introduced in Egypt in 1994. This short paper evaluates 'how well' the EIA process is working in practice in Egypt, by reviewing the quality of 45 environmentalimpact statements (EISs) produced between 2000 and 2007 for a variety of project types. The Lee and Colley review package was used to assess the quality of the selected EISs. About 69% of the EISs sampled were found to be of a satisfactory quality. An assessment of the performance of different elements of the EIA process indicates that descriptive tasks tend to be performed better than scientific tasks. The quality of core elements of EIA (e.g., impact prediction, significance evaluation, scoping and consideration of alternatives) appears to be particularly problematic. Variables that influence the quality of EISs are identified and a number of broad recommendations are made for improving the effectiveness of the EIA system.

This paper aims at conceptualising the effectiveness of impactassessment processes through the development of a literature-based framework of criteria to measure impactassessment effectiveness. Four categories of effectiveness were established: procedural, substantive, transactive and normative, each containing a number of criteria; no studies have previously brought together all four of these categories into such a comprehensive, criteria-based framework and undertaken systematic evaluation of practice. The criteria can be mapped within a cycle/or cycles of evaluation, based on the ‘logic model’, at the stages of input, process, output and outcome to enable the identification of connections between the criteria across the categories of effectiveness. This framework is considered to have potential application in measuring the effectiveness of many impactassessment processes, including strategic environmentalassessment (SEA), environmentalimpactassessment (EIA), social impactassessment (SIA) and health impactassessment (HIA). -- Highlights: • Conceptualising effectiveness of impactassessment processes. • Identification of factors influencing effectiveness of impactassessment processes. • Development of criteria within a framework for evaluating IA effectiveness. • Applying the logic model to examine connections between effectiveness criteria.

The U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) prepared this environmentalassessment (EA) to analyze the potential environmentalimpacts associated with the proposed interim measures for the Mixed Waste Management Facility (MW) groundwater at the Burial Ground Complex (BGC) at the Savannah River Site (SRS), located near Aiken, South Carolina. DOE proposes to install a small metal sheet pile dam to impound water around and over the BGC groundwater seepline. In addition, a drip irrigation system would be installed. Interim measures will also address the reduction of volatile organic compounds (VOCS) from ''hot-spot'' regions associated with the Southwest Plume Area (SWPA). This action is taken as an interim measure for the MWMF in cooperation with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SCDHEC) to reduce the amount of tritium seeping from the BGC southwest groundwater plume. The proposed action of this EA is being planned and would be implemented concurrent with a groundwater corrective action program under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). On September 30, 1999, SCDHEC issued a modification to the SRS RCRA Part B permit that adds corrective action requirements for four plumes that are currently emanating from the BGC. One of those plumes is the southwest plume. The RCRA permit requires SRS to submit a corrective action plan (CAP) for the southwest plume by March 2000. The permit requires that the initial phase of the CAP prescribe a remedy that achieves a 70-percent reduction in the annual amount of tritium being released from the southwest plume area to Fourmile Branch, a nearby stream. Approval and actual implementation of the corrective measure in that CAP may take several years. As an interim measure, the actions described in this EA would manage the release of tritium from the southwest plume area until the final actions under the CAP can be implemented. This proposed action is expected to reduce the release of tritium from the southwest plume area to Fourmile Branch between 25 to 35 percent. If this proposed action is undertaken and its effectiveness is demonstrated, it may become a component of the final action in the CAP. This document was prepared in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended; the requirements of the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for Implementing NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508); and the DOE Regulations for Implementing NEPA (10 CFR 1021). NEPA requires the assessment of environmental consequences of Federal actions that may affect the quality of the human environment. Based on the potential for impacts described herein, DOE will either publish a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) or prepare an environmentalimpact statement (EM).

DOE has prepared an EnvironmentalAssessment (EA), DOE/EA-1497, for the proposed replacement of the existing 107 centimeter (cm) [42 inch (in)] 6.87 kilometer (km) [4.27 mile (mi)] raw water intake pipeline (RWIPL). This action is necessary to allow for continued, optimum operations at the West Hackberry facility (main site/facility). The EA described the proposed action (including action alternatives) and three alternatives to the proposed action. The EA evaluated only the potential environmental consequences of the proposed action (one action alternative), and Alternative 3, which consisted of the No Build Action that is required by 10 CFR 1021.321(c). Based on the analysis in DOE/EA-1497, DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting humans or the natural environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 USC 4321 et seq. Therefore, an EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) is not required, and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). To further minimize impacts to environmental media, the DOE will also implement a Mitigation Action Plan (MAP) for this action. The MAP is included as Appendix F of this EA, which is appended to this FONSI. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA), as amended, authorizes the creation of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to store crude oil to reduce the United States' vulnerability to energy supply disruptions. Crude oil is stored in geologic formations, or salt domes, located under these facilities. The purpose of this proposed project is to construct a new RWIPL at the main site to replace the existing RWIPL which services this facility.

The purpose of this document is to describe an approach to assessingenvironmental justice issues at the start of proposed project. It is a structural approach to screening using readily available census data and commercial products that emphasizes the ability to replicate results and provide systematic data that can be used to identify spatial inequities. While our discussion of the methodology addresses only public health and safety issues related to certain minority and cohort sub-groups, systematic use of methodology could provide a valuable screening tool for identifying impacts particular to low-income groups. While the assumptions can be questioned as to applicability, they are based both on theory and practical knowledge.

The primary aim of carrying out Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment (SEA) is to provide for a high level of environmental protection and to integrate environmental considerations into the planning process. The SEA Directive (2001/42/EC) recommends monitoring to determine the environmentalimpact of the implementation of plans and programmes. Environmental indicators are a useful tool by which this impact may be measured. However, careful consideration must be given to developing a set of indicators in order to isolate, plan or programme specific impacts. Here, we demonstrate the effectiveness of a workshop-based approach to develop appropriate criteria for selecting environmental indicator for use in SEA. A multi-disciplinary team was used in the approach which consisted of representatives from each of four environmental fields i.e. biodiversity, water, air and climatic factors, together with SEA experts, planning experts, academics and consultants. The team reviewed various sets of criteria, already in existence, for environmental indicator development but not specifically for SEA indicators. The results of this review together with original criteria were applied to the final list agreed upon. Some of the criteria recommended includes, relevance to plan, ability to prioritise, and ability to identify conflict with other plan or SEA objectives.

for an accurate and transparent environmental sustainability assessment. Environmentalimpacts involved in defining indicators are considered. This analysis is based on research on environmentalimpacts, local applications) on sustainable development presents most of the environmentalimpactassessments

To meet BPA`s contractual obligation to supply electrical power to its customers, BPA proposes to acquire power generated by Klickitat Cogeneration Project. BPA has prepared an environmentalassessment evaluating the proposed project. Based on the EA analysis, BPA`s proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 for the following reasons: (1)it will not have a significant impact land use, upland vegetation, wetlands, water quality, geology, soils, public health and safety, visual quality, historical and cultural resources, recreation and socioeconomics, and (2) impacts to fisheries, wildlife resources, air quality, and noise will be temporary, minor, or sufficiently offset by mitigation. Therefore, the preparation of an environmentalimpact statement is not required and BPA is issuing this FONSI (Finding of No Significant Impact).

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an environmentalassessment (EA) on the proposed Processing and Environmental Technology Laboratory (PETC) at Sandia National Laboratories/New Mexico (SNL/NM). This facility is needed to integrate, consolidate, and enhance the materials science and materials process research and development (R&D) currently in progress at SNL/NM. Based on the analyses in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, an environmentalimpact statement is not required, and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

The groundwater impacts have been analyzed for the proposed RH-LLW disposal facility. A four-step analysis approach was documented and applied. This assessment compared the predicted groundwater ingestion dose to the more restrictive of either the 25 mrem/yr all pathway dose performance objective, or the maximum contaminant limit performance objective. The results of this analysis indicate that the groundwater impacts for either proposed facility location are expected to be less than the performance objectives. The analysis was prepared to support the NEPA-EA for the top two ranking of the proposed RH-LLW sites. As such, site-specific conditions were incorporated for each set of results generated. These site-specific conditions were included to account for the transport of radionuclides through the vadose zone and through the aquifer at each site. Site-specific parameters included the thickness of vadose zone sediments and basalts, moisture characteristics of the sediments, and aquifer velocity. Sorption parameters (Kd) were assumed to be very conservative values used in Track II analysis of CERCLA sites at INL. Infiltration was also conservatively assumed to represent higher rates corresponding to disturbed soil conditions. The results of this analysis indicate that the groundwater impacts for either proposed facility location are expected to be less than the performance objectives.

The groundwater impacts have been analyzed for the proposed RH-LLW disposal facility. A four-step analysis approach was documented and applied. This assessment compared the predicted groundwater ingestion dose to the more restrictive of either the 25 mrem/yr all pathway dose performance objective, or the maximum contaminant limit performance objective. The results of this analysis indicate that the groundwater impacts for either proposed facility location are expected to be less than the performance objectives. The analysis was prepared to support the NEPA-EA for the top two ranking of the proposed RH-LLW sites. As such, site-specific conditions were incorporated for each set of results generated. These site-specific conditions were included to account for the transport of radionuclides through the vadose zone and through the aquifer at each site. Site-specific parameters included the thickness of vadose zone sediments and basalts, moisture characteristics of the sediments, and aquifer velocity. Sorption parameters (Kd) were assumed to be very conservative values used in Track II analysis of CERCLA sites at INL. Infiltration was also conservatively assumed to represent higher rates corresponding to disturbed soil conditions. The results of this analysis indicate that the groundwater impacts for either proposed facility location are expected to be less than the performance objectives.

Impact on water quality and the beneficial use of the coal bed methane (CBM) produced water are imminent questions to be answered due to the rapidly growing CBM exploration in the Powder River Basin (PRB). The practice of discharging large volumes of water into drainage channels or using it to irrigate rangeland areas has the potential of causing serious problems. The elevated salinity and sodicity in the CBM water may be detrimental to soils, plants and the associated microbial communities. There are limited studies on CBM water characterization; however, a comprehensive understanding of CBM water influence on the local ecosystem is lacking. It is very important that the water applied to soils meets the favorable combination of salinity and sodicity that will allow the plants to grow at good production levels and that will maintain the structure of the soils. The purpose of this study was to access various CBM water treatment technologies and the influence of the treated water on local biogeochemical settings in order to evaluate and identify the proper technologies to treat the CBM produced water from CBM operations, and use it in an environmentally safe manner. Unfortunately, a suitable field site was not identified and the funds for this effort were moved to a different project.

The United States Department of Energy has prepared an EnvironmentalAssessment (DOE/EA-1300) (EA) which analyzes the potential environmental effects of developing operating and maintaining a commercial/industrial park in Area 22 of the Nevada Test Site, between Mercury Camp and U.S. Highway 95 and east of Desert Rock Airport. The EA evaluates the potential impacts of infrastructure improvements necessary to support fill build out of the 512-acre Desert Rock Sky Park. Two alternative actions were evaluated: (1) Develop, operate and maintain a commercial/industrial park in Area 22 of the Nevada Test Site, and (2) taking no action. The purpose and need for the commercial industrial park are addressed in Section 1.0 of the EA. A detailed description of the proposed action and alternatives is in section 2.0. Section 3.0 describes the affected environment. Section 4.0 the environmental consequences of the proposed action and alternative. Cumulative effects are addressed in Section 5.0. Mitigation measures are addressed in Section 6.0. The Department of Energy determined that the proposed action of developing, operating and maintaining a commercial/industrial park in Area 22 of the Nevada Test Site would best meet the needs of the agency.

This book is a straightforward exposition of US EPA-based procedures for the risk assessment and risk management of contaminated land, interwoven with discussions on some of the key fundamentals on the fate and transport of chemicals in the environment and the toxic action of environmental chemicals. The book is logically structured, commencing with a general overview of the principles of risk assessment and the interface with environmental legislation. There follows an introduction to environmental fate and transport, modeling, toxicology and uncertainty analysis, and a discussion of the elements of a risk assessment (site characterization, exposure analysis, toxic action and risk characterization), intake of a chemical with its environmental concentration and activity-related parameters such as inhalation rate and exposure time. The book concludes with a discussion on the derivation of risk-based action levels and remediation goals.

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (P.L. 94-163), as amended by the National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987 (P.L. 100-12) and by the National Appliance Energy Conservation Amendments of 1988 (P.L. 100-357), and by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (P.L. 102-486), provides energy conservation standards for 12 of the 13 types of consumer products` covered by the Act, and authorizes the Secretary of Energy to prescribe amended or new energy standards for each type (or class) of covered product. The assessment of the proposed standards for refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, and freezers presented in this document is designed to evaluate their economic impacts according to the criteria in the Act. It includes an engineering analysis of the cost and performance of design options to improve the efficiency of the products; forecasts of the number and average efficiency of products sold, the amount of energy the products will consume, and their prices and operating expenses; a determination of change in investment, revenues, and costs to manufacturers of the products; a calculation of the costs and benefits to consumers, electric utilities, and the nation as a whole; and an assessment of the environmentalimpacts of the proposed standards.

The research findings fill a gap in the body of knowledge by presenting an effective way to evaluate the significance of on-site environmentalimpacts of municipal engineering works prior to the construction stage. First, 42 on-site environmentalimpacts of municipal engineering works were identified by means of a process-oriented approach. Then, 46 indicators and their corresponding significance limits were determined on the basis of a statistical analysis of 25 new-build and remodelling municipal engineering projects. In order to ensure the objectivity of the assessment process, direct and indirect indicators were always based on quantitative data from the municipal engineering project documents. Finally, two case studies were analysed and found to illustrate the practical use of the proposed model. The model highlights the significant environmentalimpacts of a particular municipal engineering project prior to the construction stage. Consequently, preventive actions can be planned and implemented during on-site activities. The results of the model also allow a comparison of proposed municipal engineering projects and alternatives with respect to the overall on-site environmentalimpact and the absolute importance of a particular environmental aspect. These findings are useful within the framework of the environmentalimpactassessment process, as they help to improve the identification and evaluation of on-site environmental aspects of municipal engineering works. The findings may also be of use to construction companies that are willing to implement an environmental management system or simply wish to improve on-site environmental performance in municipal engineering projects. -- Highlights: • We present a model to predict the environmentalimpacts of municipal engineering works. • It highlights significant on-site environmentalimpacts prior to the construction stage. • Findings are useful within the environmentalimpactassessment process. • They also help contractors to implement environmental management systems.

Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment is a procedure aimed at introducing systematic assessment of the environmental effects of plans and programs. This procedure is based on the so-called coaxial matrices that define dependencies between plan activities (infrastructures, plants, resource extractions, buildings, etc.) and positive and negative environmentalimpacts, and dependencies between these impacts and environmental receptors. Up to now, this procedure is manually implemented by environmental experts for checking the environmental effects of a given plan or program, but it is never applied during the plan/program construction. A decision support system, based on a clear logic semantics, would be an invaluable tool not only in assessing a single, already defined plan, but also during the planning process in order to produce an optimized, environmentallyassessed plan and to study possible alternative scenarios. We propose two logic-based approaches to the problem, one based on Constraint Logic Programming a...

This paper argues that Governments have sought to streamline impactassessment in recent years (defined as the last five years) to counter concerns over the costs and potential for delays to economic development. We hypothesise that this has had some adverse consequences on the benefits that subsequently accrue from the assessments. This hypothesis is tested using a framework developed from arguments for the benefits brought by EnvironmentalImpactAssessment made in 1982 in the face of the UK Government opposition to its implementation in a time of economic recession. The particular benefits investigated are ‘consistency and fairness’, ‘early warning’, ‘environment and development’, and ‘public involvement’. Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Western Australia are the jurisdictions tested using this framework. The conclusions indicate that significant streamlining has been undertaken which has had direct adverse effects on some of the benefits that impactassessment should deliver, particularly in Canada and the UK. The research has not examined whether streamlining has had implications for the effectiveness of impactassessment, but the causal link between streamlining and benefits does sound warning bells that merit further investigation. -- Highlights: • Investigation of the extent to which government has streamlined IA. • Evaluation framework was developed based on benefits of impactassessment. • Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Western Australia were examined. • Trajectory in last five years is attrition of benefits of impactassessment.

The U.S. Department of Energy (the Department) has completed an EnvironmentalAssessment for the Future Location of the Heat Source/Radioisotope Power System Assembly and Test. Operations Currently Located at the Mound Site. Based on the analysis in the environmentalassessment, the Department has determined that the proposed action, the relocation of the Department's heat source and radioisotope power system operations, does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the ''National Environmental Policy Act'' of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, the preparation of an EnvironmentalImpact Statement is not required, and the Department is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

In the United States, the construction industry accounts for almost 75% of total raw material used. This is an obvious drain on natural resources and has a major impact on the surrounding environment. Construction materials ...

The lack of early integration with the planning and decision-making process has been a major problem in environmentalassessment. Traditional project-based environmentalimpactassessment has inadequate incentives and capacities to incorporate...

The lack of early integration with the planning and decision-making process has been a major problem in environmentalassessment. Traditional project-based environmentalimpactassessment has inadequate incentives and capacities to incorporate...

To maintain the reliability of its electrical system, BPA, in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service, needs to expand the range of vegetation management options used to clear unwanted vegetation on about 20 miles of BPA transmission line right-of-way between Bonneville Dam and Hood River; Oregon, within the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area (NSA). We propose to continue controlling undesirable vegetation using a program of Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM) which includes manual, biological and chemical treatment methods. BPA has prepared an EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1257) evaluating the proposed project. Based on the analysis in the EA, BPA has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) is not required and BPA is issuing this FONSI.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has completed an environmentalassessment (DOE/EA-1414) for the proposed implementation of the authorized limits process for waste acceptance at the C-746-U Landfill at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) in Paducah, Kentucky. Based on the results of the impact analysis reported in the EA, which is incorporated herein by this reference, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action that would significantly affect the quality of the human environment within the context of the ''National Environmental Policy Act of 1969'' (NEPA). Therefore preparation of an environmentalimpact statement is not necessary, and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

This EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) has been prepared, in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, for the deployment and operation of a commercial 40-Megawatt (MW) Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) Pilot Plant (hereafter called the Pilot Plant). A description of the proposed action is presented, and a generic environment typical of the candidate Pilot Plant siting regions is described. An assessment of the potential environmentalimpacts associated with the proposed action is given, and the risk of credible accidents and mitigating measures to reduce these risks are considered. The Federal and State plans and policies the proposed action will encompass are described. Alternatives to the proposed action are presented. Appendix A presents the navigation and environmental information contained in the US Coast Pilot for each of the candidate sites; Appendix B provides a brief description of the methods and calculations used in the EA. It is concluded that environmental disturbances associated with Pilot Plant activities could potentially cause significant environmentalimpacts; however, the magnitude of these potential impacts cannot presently be assessed, due to insufficient engineering and environmental information. A site- and design-specific OTEC Pilot Plant EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) is required to resolve the potentially significant environmental effects associated with Pilot Plant deployment and operation. (WHK)

This notice announces BPA`s decision to construct, operate, and maintain the Grizzly Substation Fiber Optic Project (Project). This Project is part of a continuing effort by BPA to complete a regionwide upgrade of its existing telecommunications system. The US Forest Service and BPA jointly prepared the Grizzly Substation Fiber Optic Project EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1241) evaluating the potential environmentalimpacts of the Proposed Action, the Underground Installation Alternative, and the No Action Alternative. Based on the analysis in the EA, the US Forest Service and BPA have determined that the Proposed Action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) is not required and BPA is issuing this FONSI. The US Forest Service has separately issued a FONSI and Decision Notice authorizing BPA to construct, operate, and maintain the Project within the Crooked River National Grassland (Grassland).

The overall purpose of this research was to assist the US Department of Energy (DOE) in developing methods for assessing the direct and indirect economic impacts due to the effects of increases in the ambient concentration of CO/sub 2/ on agricultural production. First, a comprehensive literature search was undertaken to determine what types of models and methods have been developed, which could be effectively used to conduct assessments of the direct and indirect economic impacts of CO/sub 2/ buildup. Specific attention was focused upon models and methods for assessing the physical impacts of CO/sub 2/-induced environmental changes on crop yields; national and multi-regional agricultural sector models; and macroeconomic models of the US economy. The second task involved a thorough investigation of the research efforts being conducted by other public and private sector organizations in order to determine how more recent analytical methods being developed outside of DOE could be effectively integrated into a more comprehensive analysis of the direct economic impacts of CO/sub 2/ buildup. The third and final task involved synthesizing the information gathered in the first two tasks into a systematic framework for assessing the direct and indirect economic impacts of CO/sub 2/-induced environmental changes originating in the agricultural sector of the US economy. It is concluded that the direct economic impacts of CO/sub 2/ on the agricultural sector and the indirect economic impacts caused by spillover effects from agriculture to other sectors of the economy will be pervasive; however, the direction and magnitude of these impacts on producers and consumers cannot be determined a priori.

Alternative methods for quantifying the economic impacts associated with future increases in the ambient concentration of CO/sub 2/ were examined. A literature search was undertaken, both to gain a better understanding of the ways in which CO/sub 2/ buildup could affect crop growth and to identify the different methods available for assessing the impacts of CO/sub 2/-induced environmental changes on crop yields. The second task involved identifying the scope of both the direct and indirect economic impacts that could occur as a result of CO/sub 2/-induced changes in crop yields. The third task then consisted of a comprehensive literature search to identify what types of economic models could be used effectively to assess the kinds of direct and indirect economic impacts that could conceivably occur as a result of CO/sub 2/ buildup. Specific attention was focused upon national and multi-regional agricultural sector models, multi-country agricultural trade models, and macroeconomic models of the US economy. The fourth and final task of this research involved synthesizing the information gathered in the previous tasks into a systematic framework for assessing the direct and indirect economic impacts of CO/sub 2/-induced environmental changes related to agricultural production.

CALIFORNIA ENERGY COMMISSION ISSUES AND ENVIRONMENTALIMPACTS ASSOCIATED WITH ONCE-THROUGH COOLING AT CALIFORNIA'S COASTAL POWER PLANTS In Support of the 2005 Environmental Performance Report and 2005 Integrated Principal Authors Dr. Noel Davis, Chambers Group James Schoonmaker, Aspen Environmental Group Robert

Significant achievements in Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) technology have increased the probability of producing OTEC-derived power in this decade with subsequent large-scale commercialization to follow by the turn of the century. Under U.S. Department of Energy funding, Interstate Electronics has prepared an OTEC Programmatic EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) that considers tne development, demonstration, and commercialization of OTEC power systems. The EA considers several tecnnological designs (open cycle and closed cycle), plant configurations (land-based, moored, and plantship), and power usages (baseload electricity and production of ammonia and aluminum). Potencial environmentalimpacts, health and safety issues, and a status update of international, federal, and state plans and policies, as they may influence OTEC deployments, are included.

to Know This? Why Do Project Engineers Need to Know This? As the Keystone Pipeline and Prosperity Gold ­ you may not have a "project" When approvals are given the basis for limits, design criteria the beginning to the end, should not be limited to problems of engineering and construction. Social, economic

24 January 2014 Green ImpactEnvironmental Statement Human Resources Human Resources is one of the University of Kent's professional services departments involved in Green Impact. We gained Bronze Awards with an Excellence Project which will engage other Registry colleagues. Green Impact offers schools and departments

Models have been used to assess the groundwater impacts to support the Draft EnvironmentalImpact Statement for the Disposal of Greater-Than-Class C (GTCC) Low-Level Radioactive Waste and GTCC-Like Waste (DOE-EIS 2011) for a facility sited at the Idaho National Laboratory and the EnvironmentalAssessment for the INL Remote-Handled Low-Level Waste Disposal Project (INL 2011). Groundwater impacts are primarily a function of (1) location determining the geologic and hydrologic setting, (2) disposal facility configuration, and (3) radionuclide source, including waste form and release from the waste form. In reviewing the assumptions made between the model parameters for the two different groundwater impactsassessments, significant differences were identified. This report presents the two sets of model assumptions and discusses their origins and implications for resulting dose predictions. Given more similar model parameters, predicted doses would be commensurate.

Hawaii Bioenergy Master Plan Potential EnvironmentalImpacts of Bioenergy Development in Hawaii of the potential environmentalimpacts associated with bioenergy development in Hawaii was conducted as part included the characterization of the general environmentalimpacts and issues associated with bioenergy

Since 1939, U.S. utility companies have been required to obtain a Presidential Permit to construct electric transmission lines that cross a U.S. border and connect with a foreign utility. The purpose of this document is to provide Presidential Permit applicants with two types of guidance: (1) on the type of environmental and project descriptive information needed to assess the potential impacts of the proposed and alternative actions and (2) on compliance with applicable federal and state regulations. The main three chapters present information on the purpose and content of this document (Chapter 1); legislative, regulatory, and consultation requirements for transmission line interconnect projects (Chapter 2); and identification of basic transmission system design parameters and environmental data requirements for analysis of potential impacts of the proposed action (Chapter 3). Chapter 3 also includes information on possible techniques or measures to mitigate impacts. Appendix A presents an overview of NEPA requirements and DOE`s implementing procedures. Appendix B summarizes information on legislation that may be applicable to transmission line projects proposed in Presidential Permit applications.

This report documents the results of the Environmental Management Assessment performed at the Fernald Environmental Management Project (FEMP) in Fernald, Ohio. During this assessment, the activities conducted by the assessment team included review of internal documents and reports from previous audits and assessments; interviews with US Department of Energy (DOE) and FEMP contractor personnel; and inspection and observation of selected facilities and operations. The onsite portion of the assessment was conducted from March 15 through April 1, 1993, by DOE`s Office of Environmental Audit (EH-24) located within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Environment, Safety, and Health (EH-1). EH-24 carries out independent assessments of DOE facilities and activities as part of the EH-1 Environment, Safety, and Health (ES&H) Oversight Audit Program. The EH-24 program is designed to evaluate the status of DOE facilities and activities with respect to compliance with Federal, state, and local environmental laws and regulations; compliance with DOE Orders, Guidance and Directives; conformance with accepted industry practices and standards of performance; and the status and adequacy of management systems developed to address environmental requirements. The Environmental Management Assessment of FEMP focused on the adequacy of environmental management systems. Further, in response to requests by the Office of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (EM) and Fernald Field Office (FN), Quality Assurance and Environmental Radiation activities at FEMP were evaluated from a programmatic standpoint. The results of the evaluation of these areas are contained in the Environmental Protection Programs section in this report.

Idaho Falls, ID – After completing a careful assessment, the U.S. Department of Energy has determined that building a new facility at its Idaho National Laboratory site for continued disposal of remote-handled low level radioactive waste generated by operations at the site will not have a significant impact on the environment.

In 1990, the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) embarked upon the Resource Contingency Program (RCP) to fulfill its statutory responsibilities to supply electrical power to its utility, industrial and other customers in the Pacific Northwest. Instead of buying or building generating plants now, BPA has purchased options to acquire power later if needed. Three option development agreements were signed in September 1993 with three proposed natural gas-fired, combined cycle combustion turbine CT projects near Chehalis and Satsop Washington and near Hermiston, Oregon. This environmentalimpact statement addresses the environmental consequences of purchasing power from these options. This environmentalimpact statement addresses the environmental consequences of purchasing power from these options.

Western Area Power Administration (Western) is proposing to construct, operate, and maintain eight microwave repeater stations in southwestern Colorado, southeastern Utah, and northern Arizona, in order to meet the minimum fade criteria established by the Western Systems Coordinating Council (WSCC) for the operation and protection of electric power systems. The proposed microwave facilities would increase the reliability of communication. This environmentalassessment (EA) describes the existing environmental conditions and the impacts from construction of the eight microwave communication facilities. The EA was prepared in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508), and the Department of Energy Guidelines (52 FR 47662, December 15, 1987). The proposed project would consist of constructing eight microwave facilities, each of which would include a self-supported lattice tower, an equipment building, a propane tank, distribution lines to provide electric power to the sites, and access roads to the sites. The facilities would be constructed in San Miguel and Montezuma Counties in Colorado, San Juan County, Utah, and Navajo, Apache, Coconino, and Yavapai Counties in Arizona. 20 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission prepared this statement to assess the environmentalimpacts of constructing and operating a proposed 70-megawatt hydroelectric dam and electrical infrastructure on the Cowlitz River near Morton and Randle, Washington. The U.S. Department of Energy's Bonneville Power Administration adopted this statement on 12/6/1990 to fulfil its National Environmental Policy Act requirement for its proposed action to acquire the power output from the Cowlitz Falls Hydroelectric Project.

Every two years, Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) prepares a Resource Program which identifies the resource actions BPA will take to meet its obligation to serve the forecasted power requirements of its customers. The Resource Program`s EnvironmentalImpact Statement (RPEIS) is a programmatic environmental document which will support decisions made in several future Resource Programs. Environmental documents tiered to the EIS may be prepared on a site-specific basis. The RPEIS includes a description of the environmental effects and mitigation for the various resource types available in order to evaluate the trade-offs among them. It also assesses the environmentalimpacts of adding thirteen alternative combinations of resources to the existing power system. This report contains the appendices to the RPEIS.

The scope of this environmentalassessment (EA) is to analyze the potential consequences of the Proposed Action on human health and the environment. Accordingly, this EA contains an introduction to the site and the history of the Grand Junction Office (Chapter One), a description of the Purpose and Need for Agency Action (Chapter Two), a description of the Proposed Action and Alternatives (Chapter Three), and the description of the Affected Environment and the Environmental Consequences (Chapter Four). Resource categories addressed in this EA include geology, soils and topography, groundwater and surface water, floodplains and wetlands, land use and infrastructure, human health, ecological resources, cultural resources, air quality, noise, visual resources, solid and hazardous waste management, transportation, and socioeconomic and environmental justice.

This thesis was intended to investigate the environmentalimpact of grinding in the United States manufacturing industry. Grinding is an ideal method for producing parts with a fine surface finish and high dimensional ...

The objective of this environmentalassessment (EA) is to identify the potential environmentalimpacts that could result from the proposed voluntary residential standard (VOLRES) on private sector construction of new residential buildings. 49 refs., 15 tabs.

Environmental Site Assessments Courses An Idea Developed, A Vision Realized June 2012 - City College of New York ENVIRONMENTAL SITE ASSESSMENTS COURSES AN IDEA DEVELOPED, A VISION REALIZED City course on environmental site assessments geared toward entry- level environmental professionals

Human-Centered Sustainable Product Design !!Environmentalimpact of buildings !!Green Building environments for people What is "Green" Building Design ? Real Goods Solar Living Center, Hopland, CA Van der Ryn Associates Gail Brager, School of Environmental Design ·! 36% of total U.S. primary energy use

Human exposure assessment is a key step in estimating the environmental and public health burdens that result chemical emissions in the life cycle of an industrial product or service. This column presents the third in a series of overviews of the state of the art in integrated environmentalassessment - earlier columns described emissions estimation (Frey and Small, 2003) and fate and transport modeling (Ramaswami, et al., 2004). When combined, these first two assessment elements provide estimates of ambient concentrations in the environment. Here we discuss how both models and measurements are used to translate ambient concentrations into metrics of human and ecological exposure, the necessary precursors to impactassessment. Exposure assessment is the process of measuring and/or modeling the magnitude, frequency and duration of contact between a potentially harmful agent and a target population, including the size and characteristics of that population (IPCS, 2001; Zartarian, et al., 2005). Ideally the exposure assessment process should characterize the sources, routes, pathways, and uncertainties in the assessment. Route of exposure refers to the way that an agent enters the receptor during an exposure event. Humans contact pollutants through three routes--inhalation, ingestion, and dermal uptake. Inhalation occurs in both outdoor environments and indoor environments where most people spend the majority of their time. Ingestion includes both water and food, as well as soil and dust uptake due to hand-to-mouth activity. Dermal uptake occurs through contacts with consumer products; indoor and outdoor surfaces; the water supply during washing or bathing; ambient surface waters during swimming or boating; soil during activities such as work, gardening, and play; and, to a lesser extent, from the air that surrounds us. An exposure pathway is the course that a pollutant takes from an ambient environmental medium (air, soil, water, biota, etc), to an exposure medium (indoor air, food, tap water, etc.) and to an exposed individual. Exposure scenarios are used to define plausible pathways for human contact. Recognition of the multiple pathways possible for exposure highlights the importance of a multimedia, multipathway exposure framework.

Because of past nuclear production operations along the Columbia River, there is intense public and tribal interest in assessing any residual Hanford Site related contamination along the river from the Hanford Reach to the Pacific Ocean. The Columbia River Comprehensive ImpactAssessment was proposed to address these concerns. The assessment of the Columbia River is being conducted in phases. The initial phase is a screening assessment of the risk, which addresses current environmental conditions for a range of potential uses. One component of the screening assessment estimates the risk from contaminants in the Columbia River to the environment. The objective of the ecological risk assessment is to determine whether contaminants from the Columbia River pose a significant threat to selected receptor species that exist in the river and riparian communities of the study area. This report (1) identifies the receptor species selected for the screening assessment of ecological risk and (2) describes the selection process. The species selection process consisted of two tiers. In Tier 1, a master species list was developed that included many plant and animal species known to occur in the aquatic and riparian systems of the Columbia River between Priest Rapids Dam and the Columbia River estuary. This master list was reduced to 368 species that occur in the study area (Priest Rapids Dam to McNary Dam). In Tier 2, the 181 Tier 1 species were qualitatively ranked based on a scoring of their potential exposure and sensitivity to contaminants using a conceptual exposure model for the study area.

The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 USC sections 10101-10226) requires the environmentalassessment of a proposed site to include a statement of the basis for nominating a site as suitable for characterization. Volume 2 provides a detailed statement evaluating the site suitability of the Deaf Smith County Site under DOE siting guidelines, as well as a comparison of the Deaf Smith County Site to the other sites under consideration. The evaluation of the Deaf Smith County Site is based on the impacts associated with the reference repository design, but the evaluation will not change if based on the Mission Plan repository concept. The second part of this document compares the Deaf Smith County Site to Davis Canyon, Hanford, Richton Dome and Yucca Mountain. This comparison is required under DOE guidelines and is not intended to directly support subsequent recommendation of three sites for characterization as candidate sites. 259 refs., 29 figs., 66 refs. (MHB)

The purpose of this environmentalassessment (EA) is to evaluate the environmentalimpacts resulting from remedial action at the Maybell uranium mill tailings site near Maybell, Colorado. A biological assessment (Attachment 1) and a floodplain/wetlands assessment (Assessment 2) are included as part of this EA. The following sections and attachments describe the proposed action, affected environment, and environmentalimpacts associated with the proposed remedial action, including impacts to threatened and endangered species listed or proposed for listing by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

THE INTERFACE BETWEEN ENVIRONMENTALASSESSMENT AND CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY: THE VICTOR DIAMOND Report No: 436 Title of Research Project: The Interface Between EnvironmentalAssessment and Corporate: ___________________________________________ #12;iii ABSTRACT The environmentalassessment and sustainable development literature recognizes

Comparative vs. Absolute Performance Assessment with Environmental Sustainability Metrics Xun Jin Different goals and potential audiences determine that two types of environmental performance assessments metrics can be partitioned into two camps. One suite of metrics aim to assess the environmental

Voluntary EnvironmentalAssessment Information System (NVEAIS) Notice of Participation This document identifies the agency/program and personnel participating in the National Voluntary EnvironmentalAssessment all foodborne illness outbreak environmentalassessment data into the NVEAIS. Information collected

An increasing focus on integrative approaches is one of the current trends in impactassessment. There is potential to combine impactassessment with various other forms of assessment, such as risk assessment, to make impactassessment and the management of social risks more effective. We identify the common features of social impactassessment (SIA) and social risk assessment (SRA), and discuss the merits of a combined approach. A hybrid model combining SIA and SRA to form a new approach called, ‘risk and social impactassessment’ (RSIA) is introduced. RSIA expands the capacity of SIA to evaluate and manage the social impacts of risky projects such as nuclear energy as well as natural hazards and disasters such as droughts and floods. We outline the three stages of RSIA, namely: impact identification, impactassessment, and impact management. -- Highlights: • A hybrid model to combine SIA and SRA namely RSIA is proposed. • RSIA can provide the proper mechanism to assess social impacts of natural hazards. • RSIA can play the role of ex-post as well as ex-ante assessment. • For some complicated and sensitive cases like nuclear energy, conducting a RSIA is necessary.

To evaluate the impact to the Columbia River from the Hanford Site-derived contaminants, the U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Washington State Department of Ecology initiated a study referred to as the Columbia River Comprehensive ImpactAssessment (CRCIA). To address concerns about the scope and direction of CRCIA as well as enhance regulator, tribal, stockholder, and public involvement, the CRCIA Management Team was formed in August 1995. The Team agreed to conduct CRCIA using a phased approach. The initial phase, includes two components: 1) a screening assessment to evaluate the potential impact to the river, resulting from current levels of Hanford-derived contaminants in order to support decisions on Interim Remedial Measures, and 2) a definition of the essential work remaining to provide an acceptable comprehensive river impactassessment. The screening assessment is described in Part I of this report. The essential work remaining is Part II of this report. The objective of the screening assessment is to identify areas where the greatest potential exists for adverse effects on humans or the environment. Part I of this report discusses the scope, technical approach, and results of the screening assessment. Part II defines a new paradigm for predecisional participation by those affected by Hanford cleanup decisions.

The explosion of a supernovae (SN) represents the sudden injection of about 10^51 ergs of thermal and mechanical energy in a small region of space, causing the formation of powerful shock waves that propagate through the interstellar medium at speeds of several thousands of km/s. These waves sweep, compress and heat the interstellar material that they encounter, forming the supernova remnants. Their evolution over thousands of years change forever, irreversibly, not only the physical but also the chemical properties of a vast region of space that can span hundreds of parsecs. This contribution briefly analyzes the impact of these explosions, discussing the relevance of some phenomena usually associated with SNe and their remnants in the light of recent theoretical and observational results.

The purpose of this environmentalassessment (EA) is to evaluate the environmentalimpacts resulting from remedial action at the Maybell uranium mill tailings site near Maybell, Colorado. A biological assessment and a floodplain/wetlands assessment are included as part of this EA. This report and attachments describe the proposed action, affected environment, and environmentalimpacts associated with the proposed remedial action, including impacts to threatened and endangered species listed or proposed for listing by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).

AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page onYou are now leaving Energy.gov You are now leaving Energy.gov You are being directed offOCHCO2: Final EnvironmentalAssessment376:EnvironmentalImpact StatementRecordRock

AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page onYou are now leaving Energy.gov You are now leaving Energy.gov You are being directed offOCHCO2: Final EnvironmentalAssessment376:EnvironmentalImpactEnergy complete

AFDC Printable Version Share this resource Send a link to EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page to someone by E-mail Share EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Facebook Tweet about EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page on Twitter Bookmark EERE: Alternative Fuels Data Center Home Page onYou are now leaving Energy.gov You are now leaving Energy.gov You are being directed offOCHCO2: Final EnvironmentalAssessment376:EnvironmentalImpactEnergyNotice of

Over the last 30 years, EnvironmentalImpactAssessment (EIA) in Korea has played an important role in decision-making processes particularly for environmentally sensitive projects. However, the EIA system alone has sometimes not been effective enough to ensure the successful resolution of environmental concerns. In order to compensate for the limitations of the EIA system, a new assessment system called Prior Environmental Review System (PERS), which is relevant to Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment (SEA) in some aspects, was introduced in 1993. PERS aims to balance development and preservation by identifying possible environmentalimpacts of some administrative plans mainly related to development projects in the early stages of planning. However, PERS still appeared to have some weak points such as a limited range of subjects to be assessed, and weakness of tiering (or vertical integration) from PERS to EIA. Therefore, the necessity for reform of the Korean EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) system, including PERS, was raised. In response, the Korean government sought to establish its policy direction for implementing SEA by enhancing the objectivity and expertise of PERS. The policy was approved by the National Assembly in May 2005, and went into effect in June 2006. The introduction of SEA, by enhancing PERS, provides a framework for a system of EA from the strategic level, including PPPs, to the project level. Yet, despite such improvements, some managerial and technical problems associated with subsequent EA implementation remain. This paper critically reviews the evolution of the EA system in Korea and suggests essential improvements for the current EA system based on experiences of implementation of both EIA and SEA since June 2006, in the context of international good practice.

The Town of Lakeview is proposing to construct and operate a geothermal direct use district heating system in Lakeview, Oregon. The proposed project would be in Lake County, Oregon, within the Lakeview Known Geothermal Resources Area (KGRA). The proposed project includes the following elements: Ã¯Â?Â· Drilling, testing, and completion of a new production well and geothermal water injection well Ã¯Â?Â· Construction and operation of a geothermal production fluid pipeline from the well pad to various Town buildings (i.e., local schools, hospital, and Lake County Industrial Park) and back to a geothermal water injection well This EA describes the proposed project, the alternatives considered, and presents the environmental analysis pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. The project would not result in adverse effects to the environment with the implementation of environmental protection measures.

This thesis assesses the problem of adverse environmentalimpacts due to the use of Portland cement and structural steel in the construction industry. The thesis outlines three technology and policy strategies to mitigate ...

The Twenty-Eighth Hanford Symposium on Health and the Environment was held in Richland, Washington, October 16--19, 1989. The symposium was sponsored by the US Department of Energy and the Pacific Northwest Laboratory, operated by Battelle Memorial Institute. The symposium was organized to review and evaluate some of the monitoring and assessment programs that have been conducted or are currently in place. Potential health and environmental effects of energy-related and other industrial activities have been monitored and assessed at various government and private facilities for over three decades. Most monitoring is required under government regulations; some monitoring is implemented because facility operators consider it prudent practice. As a result of these activities, there is now a substantial radiological, physical, and chemical data base for various environmental components, both in the United States and abroad. Symposium participants, both platform and poster presenters, were asked to consider, among other topics, the following: Has the expenditure of millions of dollars for radiological monitoring and assessment activities been worth the effort How do we decide when enough monitoring is enough Can we adequately assess the impacts of nonradiological components -- both inorganic and organic -- of wastes Are current regulatory requirements too restrictive or too lenient Can monitoring and assessment be made more cost effective Papers were solicited in the areas of environmental monitoring; environmental regulations; remediation, restoration, and decommissioning; modeling and dose assessment; uncertainty, design, and data analysis; and data management and quality assurance. Individual reports are processed separately for the databases.

Since 1976, the Department of Energy (DOE) has supported a variety of programs and projects dealing with the exploration, development, and utilization of geothermal energy. This report presents an overview of the environmentalimpacts associated with these efforts. Impacts that were predicted in the environmental analyses prepared for the programs and projects are reviewed and summarized, along with measures that were recommended to mitigate these impacts. Also, for those projects that have gone forward, actual impacts and implemented mitigation measures are reported, based on telephone interviews with DOE and project personnel. An accident involving spills of geothermal fluids was the major environmental concern associated with geothermal development. Other important considerations included noise from drilling and production, emissions of H/sub 2/S and cooling tower drift, disposal of solid waste (e.g., from H/sub 2/S control), and the cumulative effects of geothermal development on land use and ecosystems. Mitigation measures were frequently recommended and implemented in conjunction with noise reduction; drift elimination; reduction of fugitive dust, erosion, and sedimentation; blowout prevention; and retention of wastes and spills. Monitoring to resolve uncertainties was often implemented to detect induced seismicity and subsidence, noise, drift deposition, concentrations of air and water pollutants, and effects on groundwater. The document contains an appendix, based on these findings, which outlines major environmental concerns, mitigation measures, and monitoring requirements associated with geothermal energy. Sources of information on various potential impacts are also listed.

This document describes the elements, schedule, roles, and responsibilities of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) Environmental Compliance Audit & Assessment Program (ECAAP). The ECAAP has been developed to meet the requirements of DOE Order 450.1A,1 and Executive Order 13423.2 These referenced Orders stipulate that government agencies must develop environmental compliance audit programs to monitor and improve compliance with environmental regulations. As stated specifically in the DOE Order, as a part of a DOE facility's Environmental Management System (EMS), 'An environmental compliance audit and review program that identifies compliance deficiencies and root causes of non-compliance' shall be developed and implemented. The ECAAP has also been developed to satisfy LBNL's institutional technical assurance assessment requirements promulgated in the Environment, Safety and Health (ES&H) Self-Assessment Program (LBNL/PUB-5344) and described by the ES&H Technical Assurance Program (TAP) Manual (LBNL/PUB-913E). The ES&H TAP Manual provides the framework for systematic reviews of ES&H programs with the intent to provide assurance that these programs comply with their guiding regulations, are effective, and are properly implemented. As required by the DOE and Executive Orders and by LBNL's TAP, the goal of the ECAAP is to identify environmental regulatory compliance deficiencies and to determine their respective causes. The ECAAP then provides a means of correcting any deficiencies identified, and leads to continually improving environmental compliance performance.

Dams Civil Engineering Objective · Explore the environmentalimpact of dams. · Discuss the need for dams, and how environmental engineers mitigate some impacts. Standards and Objectives · Earth Systems humans' standard of living and environmentalimpacts. · The basic concept of constructing a dam

DRAFT EnvironmentalImpact Statement for the Truckee Meadows Flood Control Project Nevada General Reevaluation Report Volume I ­ Draft EnvironmentalImpact Statement prepared by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District May 2013 #12;#12;DRAFT EnvironmentalImpact Statement for the Truckee Meadows Flood

ENVS 4000, Spring (Jan-Apr) 2008 EnvironmentalImpacts Room: UH C756 Time: Wednesdays, 1500, readings, presentations and discussions related to environmentalimpacts of natural phenomena, which in some cases are in part a result of human activity. Topics include environmentalimpacts of development

1 A REMANUFACTURING PROCESS LIBRARY FOR ENVIRONMENTALIMPACT SIMULATIONS Authors: 1. Nurul Hanna be a key element in reducing the environmentalimpact of products but this remains to be proved. The aim of this study is to help designers evaluate the environmentalimpacts of their remanufacturing process during

Significant acccrmplishments in Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) technology have increased the probability of producing OTEC-derived power within this decade with subsequent large scale commercialization following by the turn of the century. Under U.S. Department of Energy funding, the Oceanic Engineering Operations of Interstate Electronics Corporation has prepared several OTEC EnvironmentalAssessments over the past years, in particular, the OTEC Programmatic EnvironmentalAssessment. The Programmatic EA considers several technological designs (open- and closed-cycle), plant configuratlons (land-based, moored, and plant-ship), and power usages (baseload electricity, ammonia and aluminum production). Potential environmentalimpacts, health and safetv issues and a status update of the institutional issues as they influence OTEC deployments, are included.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared a programmatic environmentalassessment (EA) of the proposed action to continue leasing withdrawn lands and DOE-owned patented claims for the exploration and production of uranium and vanadium ores. The Domestic Uranium Program regulation, codified at Title 10, Part 760.1, of the US Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), gives DOE the flexibility to continue leasing these lands under the Uranium Lease Management Program (ULMP) if the agency determines that it is in its best interest to do so. A key element in determining what is in DOE`s ``best interest`` is the assessment of the environmentalimpacts that may be attributable to lease tract operations and associated activities. On the basis of the information and analyses presented in the EA for the ULMP, DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, as defined in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 United States Code 4321 et seq.), as amended.Therefore, preparation of an environmentalimpact statement is not required for the ULMP,and DOE is issuing this Finding, of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

An LCI report for environmental releases should be considered as some form of impactassessment. The listing of releases implies that the emissions have a detrimental effect on the environment but no attempt has been made to analyze the nature... inventory of the environmental emissions to air from the construction of 3.2 miles (four lanes of highway) of a road in Texas. A process-based approach, which is basically a material and energy balance approach, was used and compared with the economic...

This report assesses the environmentalimpacts of increasing US production of fuel ethanol by 330 million gallons per year in the 1980 to 1981 time frame in order to substitute gasohol for 10% of the unleaded gasoline consumed in the United States. Alternate biomass feedstocks are examined and corn is selected as the most logical feedstock, based on its availability and cost. Three corn conversion processes that could be used to attain the desired 1980 to 1981 production are identified; fermentation plants that use a feedstock of starch and wastes from an adjacent corn refining plants are found to have environmental and economic advantages. No insurmountable environmental problems can be achieved using current technology; the capital and operating costs of this control are estimated. If ethanol production is increased substantially after 1981, the environmentally acceptable use or disposal of stillage, a liquid by-product of fermentation, could become a serious problem.

The purpose of this environmentalassessment (EA) is to evaluate the environmentalimpacts resulting from remedial action at the Maybell uranium mill tailings site near Maybell, Colorado. A biological assessment (Attachment 1) and a floodplain/wetlands attachments describe the proposed action, affected environment, and environmentalimpacts associated with the proposed remedial action, including impacts to threatened and endangered species listed or proposed for listing by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).

This EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) addresses the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) proposed action regarding an upgrade of the Pantex Plant Wastewater Treatment Facility (WWTF). Potential environmental consequences associated with the proposed action and alternative actions are provided. DOE proposes to design, build, and operate a new WWTF, consistent with the requirements of Title 30 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Chapter 317, ''Design Criteria for Sewage Systems,'' capable of supporting current and future wastewater treatment requirements of the Plant. Wastewater treatment at Pantex must provide sufficient operational flexibility to meet Pantex Plant's anticipated future needs, including potential Plant mission changes, alternative effluent uses, and wastewater discharge permit requirements. Treated wastewater effluent and non-regulated water maybe used for irrigation on DOE-owned agricultural land. Five factors support the need for DOE action: (1) The current WWTF operation has the potential for inconsistent permit compliance. (2) The existing WWTF lies completely within the 100-year floodplain. (3) The Pantex Plant mission has the potential to change, requiring infrastructure changes to the facility. (4) The life expectancy of the existing facility would be nearing its end by the time a new facility is constructed. (5) The treated wastewater effluent and non-regulated water would have a beneficial agricultural use through irrigation. Evaluation during the internal scoping led to the conclusion that the following factors are present and of concern at the proposed action site on Pantex Plant: (1) Periodic wastewater effluent permit exceedances; (2) Wetlands protection and floodplain management; (3) Capability of the existing facility to meet anticipated future needs of Pantex (4) Existing facility design life; and (5) Use of treated wastewater effluent and non-regulated water for irrigation. Evaluation during the internal scoping led to the conclusion that the following conditions are not present, nor of concern at the proposed site on Pantex Plant, and no further analysis was conducted: (1) State or national parks, forests, or other conservation areas; (2) Wild and scenic rivers; (3) Natural resources, such as timber, range, soils, minerals; (4) Properties of historic, archeological, or architectural significance; (5) Native American concerns; (6) Minority and low-income populations; and (7) Prime or unique farmland. In this document, DOE describes the proposed action and a reasonable range of alternatives to the proposed action, including the ''No-Action'' alternative. The proposed action cited in the ''U.S. Department of Energy Application for a Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit Modifying Permit to Dispose of Waste, No. 02296,'' December 1998, included the construction of a new wastewater treatment facility, a new irrigation storage pond, and the conversion of the current wastewater treatment facility into an irrigation storage pond. Although a permit modification application has been filed, if a decision on this EA necessitates it, an amendment to the permit application would be made. The permit application would be required for any of the alternatives and the filing does not preclude or predetermine selection of an alternative considered by this EA. This permit change would allow Pantex to land-dispose treated wastewater by irrigating agricultural land. This construction for the proposed action would include designing two new lagoons for wastewater treatment. One of the lagoons could function as a facultative lagoon for treatment of wastewater. The second lagoon would serve as an irrigation storage impoundment (storage pond), with the alternative use as a facultative lagoon if the first lagoon is out of service for any reason. The new facultative lagoon and irrigation water storage pond would be sited outside of the 100-year flood plain. The existing WWTF lagoon would be used as a storage pond for treated wastewater effluent for irrigation water, as needed. The two new lagoons would be li

This Final EnvironmentalImpact Statement and EnvironmentalImpact Report (Final EIS/EIR) has been prepared to meet the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The Proposed Action includes the construction, operation, and decommissioning of a 48 megawatt (gross) geothermal power plant with ancillary facilities (10-12 production well pads and 3-5 injection well pads, production and injection pipelines), access roads, and a 230-kilovolt (kV) transmission line in the Modoc National Forest in Siskiyou County, California. Alternative locations for the power plant site within a reasonable distance of the middle of the wellfield were determined to be technically feasible. Three power plant site alternatives are evaluated in the Final EIS/EIR.

Environmental Site Assessments Courses An Idea Developed, A Vision Realized June 2012 - City College of New York ENVIRONMENTAL SITE ASSESSMENTS COURSES AN IDEA DEVELOPED, A VISION REALIZED June 2012 course on environmental site assessments geared toward entry-level environmental professionals

In order to evaluate the environmentalimpacts of Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) operations, this assessment includes a descriptive section which is intended to provide sufficient detail to allow the various impacts to be viewed in proper perspective. In particular, details are provided on site characteristics, current programs, characterization of the existing site environment, and in-place environmental monitoring programs. In addition, specific facilities and operations that could conceivably impact the environment are described at length. 77 refs., 16 figs., 47 tabs.

LBNL-1636E Environmental Compliance Audit & Assessment Program Manual Prepared by: Environment Berkeley National Laboratory Berkeley, CA 94720 This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor The Regents of the University

Radioactive releases to the environment from nuclear facilities constitute a public health concern. Protecting the public from such releases can be achieved through the establishment and enforcement of regulatory standards. In the United States, numerous standards have been promulgated to regulate release control at nuclear facilities. Most recent standards are more restrictive than those in the past and require that radioactivity levels be as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA). Environmental monitoring programs and radiological dose assessment are means of ensuring compliance with regulations. Environmental monitoring programs provide empirical information on releases, such as the concentrations of released radioactivity in environmental media, while radiological dose assessment provides the analytical means of quantifying dose exposures for demonstrating compliance.

One of the key steps of the EnvironmentalImpactAssessment Process, defined by Directive 337/85 'on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects' is the preparation of the EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) of a Project. The quality of the EIS is of great importance to properly inform the public and the decision makers about the significant environmental effects of the project. Using the 'Guidance on EIA-EIS Review' 2001 report, produced with the support of the European Commission, this paper analyses the overall quality of 46 recently elaborated EIS from Portugal and Spain (1998-2003). It also analyses the quality of the various chapters of the EIS and the Non-Technical Summary. A comparison is made between the quality of the EIS from Portugal and from Spain. The results for Portugal are also compared with those of other European countries (Ireland and United Kingdom) in similar periods. Finally it presents overall conclusions and suggestions for improvement.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Performance Assessment Departments at Sandia National Laboratories have, over the last twenty (20) years, developed unique, internationally-recognized performance and risk assessment methods to assess options for the safe disposal and remediation of radioactive and non-radioactive hazardous waste/contamination in geohydrologic systems. While these methods were originally developed for the disposal of nuclear waste, ongoing improvements and extensions make them equally applicable to a variety of environmental problems such as those associated with the remediation of EPA designated Superfund sites and the more generic Brownfield sites (industrial sites whose future use is restricted because of real or perceived contamination).

disclosure of impacts of proposed actions & possible mitigation § Created basis for environmentalimpact not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment § EnvironmentalImpact environment § EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) ­ significance of environmentalimpacts is not clearly established

Groundwater impactassessments are conducted at liquid effluent receiving sites on the Hanford Site to determine hydrologic and contaminant impacts caused by discharging wastewater to the soil column. The assessments conducted are pursuant to the Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (Tri-Party Agreement) Milestone M-17-00A and M-17-00B, as agreed by the US Department of Energy (DOE), Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology), and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (Ecology et al. 1992). This report assessesimpacts on the groundwater and vadose zone from wastewater discharged to the 216-U-14 Ditch. Contemporary effluent waste streams of interest are 242-S Evaporator Steam Condensate and UO{sub 3}/U Plant wastewater.

The purpose of this EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) is to update the ``Test Area North Pool Stabilization Project`` EA (DOE/EA-1050) and finding of no significant impact (FONSI) issued May 6, 1996. This update analyzes the environmental and health impacts of a drying process for the Three Mile Island (TMI) nuclear reactor core debris canisters now stored underwater in a facility on the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL). A drying process was analyzed in the predecision versions of the EA released in 1995 but that particular process was determined to be ineffective and dropped form the Ea/FONSI issued May 6, 1996. The origin and nature of the TMI core debris and the proposed drying process are described and analyzed in detail in this EA. As did the 1996 EA, this update analyzes the environmental and health impacts of removing various radioactive materials from underwater storage, dewatering these materials, constructing a new interim dry storage facility, and transporting and placing the materials into the new facility. Also, as did the 1996 EA, this EA analyzes the removal, treatment and disposal of water from the pool, and placement of the facility into a safe, standby condition. The entire action would take place within the boundaries of the INEEL. The materials are currently stored underwater in the Test Area North (TAN) building 607 pool, the new interim dry storage facility would be constructed at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant (ICPP) which is about 25 miles south of TAN.

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) was initially interpreted as requiring full disclosure of the environmentalimpacts of a federal action. Because of the limitations of time, money, and manpower, this requirement that all impacts be considered has led to superficial analysis of many important impacts. The President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has provided a solution to this problem by reinterpreting NEPA as requiring analysis of those impacts which have significant bearing on decision making. Because assessment resources can now be concentrated on a few critical issues, it should be possible to perform field perturbation experiments to provide direct evidence of the effects of a specific mixture of pollutants or physical disturbances on the specific receiving ecosystem. Techniques are described for field simulation of gaseous and particulate air pollution, soil pollutants, disturbance of the earth's surface, and disturbance of wildlife. These techniques are discussed in terms of their realism, cost, and the restrictions which they place on the measurement of ecological parameters.

This book presents a unified compilation of models and parameters appropriate for assessing the impact of radioactive discharges to the environment. Models examined include those developed for the prediction of atmospheric and hydrologic transport and deposition, for terrestrial and aquatic food-chain bioaccumulation, and for internal and external dosimetry. Chapters have been entered separately into the data base. (ACR)

The overall environmentalimpact of the eucalyptus to methanol energy system in Florida is assessed. The environmentalimpacts associated with the following steps of the process are considered: (1) the greenhouse and laboratory; (2) the eucalyptus plantation; (3) transporting the mature logs; (4) the hammermill; and (5) the methanol synthesis plant. Next, the environmental effects of methanol as an undiluted motor fuel, methanol as a gasoline blend, and gasoline as motor fuels are compared. Finally, the environmental effects of the eucalypt gasification/methanol synthesis system are compared to the coal liquefaction and conversion system.

A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was developed to evaluate the environmentalimpacts of producing 1 kg pig live weight. A comparison was made between dietary protein sources, i.e. imported soybean meal with the UK protein ...

1 An ImpactAssessment Model for Distributed Adaptive Security Situation Assessment* Mark Heckman mechanism is not simply to stop attacks, but to protect a computing resource so that the resource can continue to perform its function. A computing resource, however, is only a component of a larger system

research in KYNP, the most common bio-physical impacts include soil compaction, removal of humus layer, erosion, plant damage, soil and root exposure, water quality deterioration, disturbance and feeding wildlife. Other environmentalimpacts include noise...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Energy Department recently signed a notice of intent to prepare an environmentalassessment to analyze the potential environmentalimpacts from a proposed project to accept used nuclear fuel from the Federal Republic of Germany at DOE’s Savannah River Site (SRS) for processing and disposition.

The DOE is proposing to provide financial assistance to the Kotzebue Electric Association to expand its existing wind installation near Kotzebue, Alaska. Like many rural Alaska towns, Kotzebue uses diesel-powered generators to produce its electricity, the high cost of which is currently subsidized by the Alaska State government. In an effort to provide a cost effective and clean source of electricity, reduce dependence on diesel fuel, and reduce air pollutants, the DOE is proposing to fund an experimental wind installation to test commercially available wind turbines under Arctic conditions. The results would provide valuable information to other Alaska communities experiencing similar dependence on diesel-powered generators. The environmentalassessment for the proposed wind installation assessedimpacts to biological resources, land use, electromagnetic interference, coastal zone, air quality, cultural resources, and noise. It was determined that the project does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. Therefore, the preparation of an environmentalimpact statement is not required, and DOE has issued a Finding of No Significant Impact.

This document is the Comments and Responses to Comments volume of the Final EnvironmentalImpact Statement and EnvironmentalImpact Report prepared for the proposed Telephone Flat Geothermal Development Project (Final EIS/EIR). This volume of the Final EIS/EIR provides copies of the written comments received on the Draft EIS/EIR and the leady agency responses to those comments in conformance with the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

In December 1996, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published the ''Storage and Disposition of Weapons-Usable Fissile Materials Final Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement (Storage and Disposition PEIS)'' (DOE 1996a). That PEIS analyzes the potential environmental consequences of alternative strategies for the long-term storage of weapons-usable plutonium and highly enriched uranium (HEU) and the disposition of weapons-usable plutonium that has been or may be declared surplus to national security needs. The Record of Decision (ROD) for the ''Storage and Disposition PEIS'', issued on January 14, 1997 (DOE 1997a), outlines DOE's decision to pursue an approach to plutonium disposition that would make surplus weapons-usable plutonium inaccessible and unattractive for weapons use. DOE's disposition strategy, consistent with the Preferred Alternative analyzed in the ''Storage and Disposition PEIS'', allows for both the immobilization of some (and potentially all) of the surplus plutonium and use of some of the surplus plutonium as mixed oxide (MOX) fuel in existing domestic, commercial reactors. The disposition of surplus plutonium would also involve disposal of both the immobilized plutonium and the MOX fuel (as spent nuclear fuel) in a potential geologic repository.

Southwestern Power Administration (Southwestern) needs to renew expiring power sales contracts with new term (10 year) sales contracts. The existing contracts have been in place for several years and many will expire over the next ten years. Southwestern completed an EnvironmentalAssessment on the existing power allocation in June, 1979 (a copy of the EA is attached), and there are no proposed additions of any major new generation resources, service to discrete major new loads, or major changes in operating parameters, beyond those included in the existing power allocation. Impacts from a no action plan, proposed alternative, and market power for less than 10 years are described.

A reflection on the last report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on the application and effectiveness of the Directive on Strategic EnvironmentalAssessment (SEA) is provided. It covers the inadequacies of the approval/permitting context of SEA, which appears to be increasingly applied by a significant number of Member States in recent years. A viewpoint is provided on the main deficiencies of such praxis. As a practical defence of the planning context of SEA, the authors propose that the EC should consider a clear recommendation to Member States to cease performing SEA in the approval/permitting context until proper amendments to the SEA Directive are made and implemented. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Administrative and permitting context of SEA, has ousted the primary environmentalimpactassessment goal. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The approval context moves from the environmental protection to the area of political power and economy. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer SEA and EIA are misused. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Environmental evaluations should be used for improving the projects/plans/programmes and not for permitting them.

The proposed Happy Valley project consists of construction of a new BPA customer service 69-kV substation south of Sequim in Clallam County, Washington. A tie line, to be constructed by the customer as part of this project, will link the new BPA facility to the existing customer's transmission system in the area. This project responds to rapid load growth in the Olympic Peninsula, and will strengthen the existing BPA system and interconnected utility systems. It will reduce transmission losses presently incurred, especially on the BPA system supplying power to the Olympic Peninsula. This report describes the potential environmentalimpact of the proposed actions. 2 figs., 1 tab.

In accordance with the Department of Energy`s National Environmental Policy Act implementing procedures in Volume 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Section 1021,312, the Environmental Restoration and Waste Management Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement Implementation Plan has two primary purposes: to provide guidance for the preparation of the Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement and to record the issues resulting from the scoping and the extended public participation process. The Implementation Plan identifies and discusses the following: background of Environmental Restoration and Waste Management activities, the purpose of the Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement, and the relationship of the Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement to other Departmental initiatives (Chapter 1); need and purposes for action (Chapter 2); scoping process and results of the public participation program in defining the scope of the Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement, including a summary of the comments received and their disposition (Chapter 3); planned scope and content of the Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement (Chapter 4); consultations with other agencies and the role of cooperating agencies (Chapter 5); planned schedule of major Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement milestones (Chapter 6); and responsibilities for preparation of the Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement (Chapter 7).

To assess the effectiveness of DOE`s environmental programs, the Office of Environmental Audit conducts Environmental Management Assessments of DOE programs and facilities. These assessments take a broad programmatic view of environmental systems which may cover multiple sites. The focus of the assessment is on the infrastructure, systems, programs, and tools to manage environmental issues, not on the compliance issues themselves. Protocols have been developed to assist in the conduct of Environmental Management Assessments. The protocols are, based on and serve as implementing guidelines for the Environmental Management Section of ``Performance Objectives and Criteria for Conducting DOE Environmental Audits`` (DOE/EH-022). They are intended to provide guidance to the Assessment Team in conducting these reviews.

This report provides technical support information for use in analyzing environmentalimpacts associated with U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) low-level radioactive waste (LLW) management alternatives in the Waste-Management (WM) Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement (PEIS). Waste loads treated and disposed of for each of the LLW alternatives considered in the DOE WM PEIS are presented. Waste loads are presented for DOE Waste Management (WM) wastes, which are generated from routine operations. Radioactivity concentrations and waste quantities for treatment and disposal under the different LLW alternatives are described for WM waste. 76 refs., 14 figs., 42 tabs.

This report was prepared to support the analysis of risks and costs associated with the proposed treatment of low-level mixed waste (LLMW) under management of the US Department of Energy (DOE). The various waste management alternatives for treatment of LLMW have been defined in the DOE`s Office of Waste Management Programmatic EnvironmentalImpact Statement. This technical memorandum estimates the waste material throughput expected at each proposed LLMW treatment facility and analyzes potential radiological and chemical releases at each DOE site resulting from treatment of these wastes. Models have been developed to generate site-dependent radiological profiles and waste-stream-dependent chemical profiles for these wastes. Current site-dependent inventories and estimates for future generation of LLMW have been obtained from DOE`s 1994 Mixed Waste Inventory Report (MWIR-2). Using treatment procedures developed by the Mixed Waste Treatment Project, the MWIR-2 database was analyzed to provide waste throughput and emission estimates for each of the different waste types assessed in this report. Uncertainties in the estimates at each site are discussed for waste material throughputs and radiological and chemical releases.

This is volume 1 of the final environmentalimpact statement of the Bonneville Power Administration Information is included on the following: Purpose of and need for action; alternatives including the proposed action; affected environment; and environmental consequences.

environmentalimpacts of a product, across its entire life cycle ­ from creation to use to discard. The key environmental category is a linear combination of the impacts of the children in that category. LCA has its life cycle as its children. Each node of the tree is associated with various environmentalimpact

Undertaking an EnvironmentalImpactAssessment in Forestry and preparing an Environmental Statement #12;UndertakinganEnvironmentalImpactAssessmentinForestry Contents Introduction 3 Deciding the Scope of the Environmental Statement 5 The benefits of carrying out an EnvironmentalImpactAssessment 6 Structure, content

This report documents the results of the environmental management assessment performed at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado. The onsite portion of the assessment was conducted from September 14 through September 27, 1993, by DOE`s Office of Environmental Audit (EH-24) located within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Environment, Safety, and Health (EH-1). During this assessment, the activities conducted by the assessment team included reviews of internal documents and reports from previous audits and assessments; interviews with US Department of Energy (DOE) and NREL contractor personnel; and inspections and observations of selected facilities and operations. The environmental management assessment of NREL focused on the adequacy of environmental management systems and assessed the formality of programs employing an approach that recognizes the level of formality implementing environmental programs may vary commensurate with non-nuclear research and development operations. The Assessment Team evaluated environmental monitoring, waste management and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) activities at NREL, from a programmatic standpoint. The results of the evaluation of these areas are contained in the Environmental Protection Programs section of this report. The scope of the NREL Environmental Management Assessment was comprehensive and included all areas of environmental management. At the same time, environmental monitoring, waste management, and NEPA activities were evaluated to develop a programmatic understanding of these environmental disciplines, building upon the results of previous appraisals, audits, and reviews performed at the NREL.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has considered a proposal from the State of Colorado, Office of Energy Conservation (OEC), for funding construction of the Expanded Ponnequin Wind Project in Weld County, Colorado. OEC plans to enter into a contracting arrangement with Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo) for the completion of these activities. PSCo, along with its subcontractors and business partners, are jointly developing the Expanded Ponnequin Wind Project. The purpose of this Final EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) is to provide DOE and the public with information on potential environmentalimpacts associated with the Expanded Ponnequin Wind Energy Project. This EA, and public comments received on it, were used in DOE`s deliberations on whether to release funding for the expanded project under the Commercialization Ventures Program.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the nation`s primary solar and renewable energy research laboratory, proposes to expand its wind technology research and development program activities at its National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) near Golden, Colorado. NWTC is an existing wind energy research facility operated by NREL for the US Department of Energy (DOE). Proposed activities include the construction and reuse of buildings and facilities, installation of up to 20 wind turbine test sites, improvements in infrastructure, and subsequent research activities, technology testing, and site operations. In addition to wind turbine test activities, NWTC may be used to support other NREL program activities and small-scale demonstration projects. This document assesses potential consequences to resources within the physical, biological, and human environment, including potential impacts to: air quality, geology and soils, water resources, biological resources, cultural and historic resources, socioeconomic resources, land use, visual resources, noise environment, hazardous materials and waste management, and health and safety conditions. Comment letters were received from several agencies in response to the scoping and predecisional draft reviews. The comments have been incorporated as appropriate into the document with full text of the letters contained in the Appendices. Additionally, information from the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site on going sitewide assessment of potential environmentalimpacts has been reviewed and discussed by representatives of both parties and incorporated into the document as appropriate.

This report assesses the environmental consequences of the transportation of radioactive materials in densely populated urban areas, including estimates of the radiological, nonradiological, and social impacts arising from this process. The chapters of the report and the appendices which follow detail the methodology and results for each of four causative event categories: incident free transport, vehicular accidents, human errors or deviations from accepted quality assurance practices, and sabotage or malevolent acts. The numerical results are expressed in terms of the expected radiological and economic impacts from each. Following these discussions, alternatives to the current transport practice are considered. Then, the detailed analysis is extended from a limited area of New York city to other urban areas. The appendices contain the data bases and specific models used to evaluate these impacts, as well as discussions of chemical toxicity and the social impacts of radioactive material transport in urban areas. The latter are evaluated for each causative event category in terms of psychological, sociological, political, legal, and organizational impacts. The report is followed by an extensive bibliography covering the many fields of study which were required in performing the analysis.

During the drilling of an oil or gas well, drilling fluid (or mud) is used to maintain well control and to remove drill cuttings from the hole. In response to effluent limitation guidelines promulgated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for discharge of drilling wastes offshore, alternatives to water and oil-based muds have been developed. These synthetic-based muds (SBMs) are more efficient than water-based muds (WBMs) for drilling difficult and complex formation intervals and have lower toxicity and smaller environmentalimpacts than diesel or conventional mineral oil-based muds (OBMs). A third category of drilling fluids, derived from petroleum and called enhanced mineral oils (EMOs), also have these advantages over the traditionally used OBMs and WBMs. EPA recognizes that SBMs and EMOs are new classes of drilling fluids, but their regulatory status is unclear. To address this uncertainty, EPA is following an innovative presumptive rulemaking process that will develop final regulations for SBM discharges offshore in less than three years. This report develops a framework for a comparative risk assessment for the discharge of SBMs and EMOs, to help support a risk-based, integrated approach to regulatory decision making. The framework will help identify potential impacts and benefits associated with the use of SBMs, EMOs, WBMs, and OBMs; identify areas where additional data are needed; and support early decision-making in the absence of complete data. As additional data becomes available, the framework can support a full quantitative comparative assessment. Detailed data are provided to support a comparative assessment in the areas of occupational and public health impacts.

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of River Protection (ORP) needs to collect engineering and technical information on (1) the physical response and behavior of a Phase I grout fill in an actual tank, (2) field deployment of grout production equipment and (3) the conduct of component closure activities for single-shell tank (SST) 241-C-106 (C-106). Activities associated with this Accelerated Tank Closure Demonstration (ATCD) project include placement of grout in C-106 following retrieval, and associated component closure activities. The activities will provide information that will be used in determining future closure actions for the remaining SSTs and tank farms at the Hanford Site. This information may also support preparation of the EnvironmentalImpact Statement (EIS) for Retrieval, Treatment, and Disposal of Tank Waste and Closure of Single-Shell Tanks at the Hanford Site, Richland, Washington (Tank Closure EIS). Information will be obtained from the various activities associated with the component closure activities for C-106 located in the 241-C tank farm (C tank farm) under the ''Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976'' (RCRA) and the Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (HFFACO) (Ecology et al. 1989). The impacts of retrieving waste from C-106 are bounded by the analysis in the Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS) EIS (DOE/EIS-0189), hereinafter referred to as the TWRS EIS. DOE has conducted and continues to conduct retrieval activities at C-106 in preparation for the ATCD Project. For major federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, the ''National Environmental Policy Act of 1969'' (NEPA) requires that federal agencies evaluate the environmental effects of their proposed and alternative actions before making decisions to take action. The President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has developed regulations for implementing NEPA. These regulations are found in Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Parts 1500-1508. They require the preparation of an EnvironmentalAssessment (EA) that includes an evaluation of alternative means of addressing the problem and a discussion of the potential environmentalimpacts of a proposed federal action. An EA provides analysis to determine whether an EIS or a finding of no significant impact should be prepared.